Love Doesn't Hurt
by USCutie15
Summary: JJ has a secret. Emily notices something's wrong. Will Emily find out what's going on? And what happens when the feelings they hold for one another are brought to the surface? WARNINGS: Domestic abuse, explicit rape by a partner and femslash. R&R. First established JJ/OC, but later JJ/Emily.
1. The Girl of Her Dreams

**A/N #1: Throughout this story, there will be mentions of domestic abuse, sexual assault by a partner and femslash. If you are sensitive to any of those then I suggest you don't read this story.**

 **A/N #2: I will also rush JJ and Emily's relationship a little so that there won't be many boring chapters. If that's not your thing then that's also another reason to not read.**

 **A/N #3: If you don't mind any of the things above, then I hope you like this story :D Happy reading and don't forget to review! :D**

* * *

It was a quiet night at the BAU. It was already past 8:30 PM, but everybody was still there doing paperwork.

Emily was sitting at her desk when she heard someone coming up behind her.

"Hey, Em." The person said, sitting on her desk.

Emily looked up and saw JJ smiling at her.

"Hey, JJ." Emily said with a smile.

Even though nobody knew it, she secretly loved JJ. When she met her, she just couldn't believe that she would be working with someone as beautiful as JJ.

JJ was everything she'd ever wanted. To put it mildly, JJ was the girl of her dreams.

She remembered a night when the two of them had gone out for drinks.

* * *

 _"How about one more?" Emily asked as she held her glass up._

 _"Only if it's on me." JJ said with a smile._

 _Emily chuckled back at her. "No problem." She said._

 _They told the bartender to get them another drink. When the bartender returned with their drinks, they took a sip._

 _"Hey JJ?" Emily asked. She wasn't sure if it was the alcohol talking, but she felt the need to tell her friend something she had been hiding since she joined the team._

 _"Yeah?" JJ asked as she looked at Emily, expectantly._

 _"I don't know why, but I feel like I have to tell you something, but you have to promise me you won't freak out, okay?" Emily asked, nervously. She was afraid of losing JJ's friendship forever._

 _"O...kay?" It came out as more of a question as she became a little concerned at her friend's words._

 _"I-uhm-I..." Emily stumbled over her words, feeling tongue-tied, not knowing how to tell JJ this._

 _"What is it, Em?" JJ asked, carefully._

 _"Just promise me you won't freak out. Promise me, Jayje." Emily begged as she looked into JJ's eyes._

 _"I promise. Tell me, Emily." JJ promised, as she looked back into Emily's._

 _"I-Jayje, I like-I like gir-girls. I'm into women." Emily admitted as she waited anxiously for JJ's response, her leg bouncing up and down, nervously._

 _"Calm down, Em. I'm not going to freak out." JJ said with a smile and a chuckle as she saw the relieved look that crossed Emily's face._

 _"Oh, thank God." Emily muttered as she let out a breath she didn't even realize she was holding._

 _"But it does make it easier to say that I am too. I wasn't going to say anything, but since you admitted it, I guess it's only fair that I do too." JJ said with a small chuckle._

 _"Really? You are?" Emily asked unbelievably._

 _"Yeah, really. I'm currently in a relationship with a woman." JJ said with a slight laugh and a fake smile that Emily didn't notice was actually fake._

 _Emily smiled although her heart was breaking. The one chance she had with JJ had just gone out the window, but she realized that as long as JJ was happy, then she was happy._

 _However, what Emily thought was a little bit strange was that, whenever she asked questions about JJ's girlfriend, JJ would always change the subject. Emily thought that maybe JJ was just the jealous type and didn't want to show her girlfriend off to anybody, since she had never met the other woman and neither had the team. To Emily's knowledge, nobody knew who this woman was._

* * *

"I think I'm going to head home, what about you?" JJ asked as she looked at Emily.

Emily shrugged.

"Yeah, I think I am too. I'm tired of paperwork and it will still be here in the morning, so...I'll walk you out?" Emily asked with a smile.

JJ grinned and nodded.

"Alright, let's go then." Emily said, grabbing her jacket off her chair and putting it on before grabbing her gun, clipping it to her belt, her cellphone and other essential stuff she had brought with her to work.

When Emily had all her things they started walking out.

"Bye guys!" The two girls said to the remaining agents.

"Goodnight!" The guys shouted back as JJ and Emily left.

When they got to the parking lot, Emily couldn't see JJ's car.

"Jayje, where's your car?" Emily asked.

"Oh, I almost forgot. I parked it on a street, a few blocks away from here, since the parking lot was full when I got in this morning." JJ said with a chuckle.

"Okay, I'll walk you there and then I'll come back to get mine." Emily said, being the gentlewoman that she was.

"Emily, it's only a few blocks away. I'll be fine." JJ insisted.

"Oh hell no. There is no way I'm going to let you walk even one block alone, much less at night." Emily said. To say she was protective was an understatement. She knew JJ could stand up for herself if something happened, but she didn't want to risk it, so she was adamant to go with her.

"Okay." JJ said, quietly. Emily found it weird that JJ gave in that easily, she was always one to put up a fight, but she assumed it was probably because she was tired and just wanted to get home.

They walked quietly to JJ's car, but before JJ got in, she turned to Emily.

"Thanks for coming with me. Do you want me to drop you off at the parking lot?" She asked.

"No, thanks. I'll walk. Have a safe drive home. I'll see you tomorrow." Emily said with a smile.

JJ smiled back.

"See you tomorrow." She said as she got in her car and drove off.

Emily just stood there watching as JJ's car faded into the night before making her way to her own car.


	2. She's My Colleague

**A/N: Thank you so much for all the sweet reviews. I hope you continue to do so as the story goes on. They keep me motivated and make me really happy.**

 **IniTiniNini \- ** Thank you for your review. Here's the next chapter :) **  
elphiemolizbethbau \- ** I can't wait to get it done. I think you'll really like this one (ate least I hope) hahaha :P **  
Kensi1997 \- ** Thank you! I absolutely love your reviews. You are so supportive! I hope you like this one as much (or more) than the others! :D **  
rmpcmfan \- ** Thank you for reviewing! I hope you enjoy this story! You're an awesome reviewer! XD **  
T-Rex Ninja Kid \- ** Hahaha yeah, I guess I kind of spoiled that, but I hope you like this story! Love to read your reviews! ^.^ **  
Don't forget to breath \- ** Thank you so much for taking the time to review! I hope you like it, although it will have a lot of angst. Enjoy! 8) **  
**

 _ **I will also be updating every Wednesday and Saturday unless something comes up and I really can't.**_

 **Warning: This is where it starts to get dark.**

* * *

When JJ got home, she opened the door quietly. She prayed to God that her girlfriend was already asleep. She was tired and just wanted to get some rest, but she knew that that was unlikely.

She closed the door behind her and locked it before she went into the living room.

She closed her eyes slightly as she saw that her girlfriend was still wide awake.

She forced a smile and went over to the couch where the other woman was sitting, dressed in sweats and a T-shirt and was half-way through a bottle of beer.

"Hey babe." JJ said, forcing the words out along with the fake smile on her lips.

"You're late." Kim said, simply as she took another swig of her beer.

JJ swallowed hard.

"I know, I'm sorry. I had to do some paperwork." She said and it was true. She was in her office all day doing paperwork and once she was done, she came straight home.

Kim stood up. She was taller than JJ, about Emily's height. She had brown eyes and light brown hair. She was muscular, she could easily overpower JJ, even though JJ was an FBI agent, and the fear JJ had of her made it even worse.

"Really? You're not lying to me, are you?" Kim said in a threatening voice as she approached JJ.

JJ backed away, taking a few steps backwards as Kim continued to walk towards her.

Kim was a very jealous and possessive person. She always assumed that JJ was cheating on her, even though JJ would never do that.

"I'm not lying, I swear. Please, Kim. I'm not lying." JJ said as she felt tears gather in her eyes.

She was so scared when Kim was like this and even more when Kim had alcohol in her system.

She was rewarded with a slap to the face.

"Shut up, bitch! You stupid, worthless whore! You think I don't know that you're cheating on me? Who is the slut that you're always with?" Kim yelled at her.

JJ was shocked. How did Kim know about Emily? She hadn't even talked about her.

"Yeah, that's right, I know about her. A few weeks ago I saw you pick her up. You see, I decided to follow you, to see where you went." Kim said as anger was all that showed in her eyes.

JJ was downright terrified.

"She-She's my colleague! I work with her! I'm not cheating on you! Her car was in the mechanic and she asked me to pick her up!" JJ tried to explain as she was now barely managing to keep the tears from falling.

"Yeah, sure, and I'm Santa Clause!" Kim said sarcastically. "Shut up!" She yelled as she gave JJ yet another slap, before backing her up against the wall, grabbing her shoulders and pushing her roughly against the concrete.

She then grabbed her by the neck roughly, and held her in a frontal choke hold with a single hand.

"OW! Kim, you're hurting me!" JJ said as the first tear slipped down.

"Yeah, like I give a rats ass. You're worthless, Jennifer! Worthless! You think that bitch cares about you? She just wants to bang you! As soon as she gets what she needs, she will dispose of you like the worthless piece of shit you are! Nobody gives a damn about you, can't you see that? Nobody cares about a worthless slut like you! Nobody will ever love you, I'm the only one that does! You should feel lucky, you ungrateful little bitch!" Kim yelled as she smirked.

JJ tried to block out the venomous words, but she couldn't help but believe what Kim was saying. She was worthless. Nobody would ever love her.

She was brought out of her thoughts by a punch to the stomach.

She bent over and clutched her abdomen in pain.

Kim grabbed her hair and pulled her up as she delivered a kick across JJ's back, making JJ cry out.

"Stop! Kim, please! Please stop!" JJ begged in agony.

"Shut up, you worthless bitch! I would rather eat a pile of shit than admit I'm your girlfriend! You're an embarrassment! A good for nothing slutty little bitch!" Kim screamed as she delivered another punch to JJ's abdomen.

JJ cried. She knew tomorrow she was going to be in pain. This would just have to be another day that she would have to pretend like she wasn't sore, like everything was alright and she didn't get beat up the night before.

It wasn't new to JJ, having to pretend. She was used to this. She was used to getting beat up at the hands of her girlfriend. She was used to the pain, but she had to be a very good actress in order to get past profilers, especially Emily.

Emily always had an eye out for everything. Even though she didn't profile her team, she noticed small things like when someone is in pain and JJ hated working with profilers for that very reason. They could see everything.

"You're so stupid, Jennifer! You're a waste of space, a waste of breath! You're a disgrace to humanity! You're a dumb, ungrateful, stupid, worthless bitch! You should be grateful that I even fuck you, you should feel grateful that I'd even want to touch you!" Kim continued to scream insults at her as more punches, slaps and kicks were delivered to JJ's body.

JJ just continued to scream as she cried in agony. She begged Kim to stop over and over again, but her pleas continued to fall on deaf ears.

She didn't matter, she was just a waste of space, a waste of breath. This was what she deserved. Just like Kim had said.


	3. Worthless

**A/N: Thank you guys so much for reviewing!**

 **PAGET** \- Thank you for reviewing! :D I hope you continue to follow and like this story! :P

 **T-Rex Ninja Kid** \- Thank you for reviewing! Everything will be taken care of. \O/

 **JemilyRocks** \- Thanks for reviewing! I don't think it's possible to incorporate JJ's fear of the woods into this story, but I will think about making a story out of that idea after I'm done with this one (which may take a while). On your second review, I didn't really get what you were trying to say on your first sentence. No, nothing bad happened to her to make her fear men. She's just likes women, some people are born like that, it doesn't mean that something bad happened to them by a man that made them turn to women. The reason that I created this story was exactly for that: to show that it's not only men who can be abusive. As for the updates, I will update twice a week. Only on Wednesday's and Saturday's. 8]

 **penny. robinette. 90** \- Thank you so much for reviewing. Believe me, everything will work out just fine. =)

 **elphiemolizbethbau** \- She is also very similar to ALL abusive scumbags and no, she will be evil :P. I don't like people like that and (as you know) I make no excuses for these types of animals. And yes, it was hard to write *sigh* but believe me, it wasn't the worst. There are worse. ~.~

 **rmpcmfan** \- Just like I told the others, everything will work out _just fine_. *Evil laugh* Thank you for your support ^.^

 **Kensi1997** \- No, you're the amazing one. Thank you so much for your support :) You're awesome, girl! ;)

* * *

The next day, JJ woke up and sat up on the couch as she recalled the day before.

Her eyes filled up with tears as she remembered the pain of the hits she took from Kim. The tears started falling as she remembered Kim's words and she remembered that Kim had made her sleep on the couch, saying she 'couldn't stand to sleep in the same bed as JJ'. JJ remembered Kim going up the stairs to the bedroom while she ordered JJ to sleep on the couch, as if she was nothing but a dog being told to sit. This happened a lot. Kim would tell JJ that she wasn't worth sleeping in the same bed as her.

The tears continued to fall as JJ moved and pain shot through her body. Kim knew what she was doing because she never hit her face or any places where her team could see the bruises. She always hit her where she could cover it up. It's like it was planned.

She froze when she heard footsteps coming down the stairs. She tried to move, but she couldn't, she just seemed paralyzed with fear.

"Morning baby." Kim said happily as if nothing had happened the night before.

"Morning." JJ said in a small voice.

"I'm sorry for last night, you know how I get about other women being around you. It was your own fault though. You needed to be punished for not telling me that you had gone to pick up another woman at her house, you understand that, right?" Kim said, making sure JJ knew she was to blame.

JJ just nodded. She was going to say that Emily was just a friend, a colleague, but she decided to stay quiet because that would only lead to an argument and she didn't want that.

"Good. Now, how about you cook us some breakfast while I go take a shower?" Kim said as she left without waiting for an answer.

JJ knew it wasn't really a question and she didn't have a choice, so she got up with a lot of effort and finally, she got to the kitchen where she began to painfully make breakfast.

When she finished breakfast, she put it on the table as Kim came in.

They ate in silence.

When Kim finished, she got up.

"I'm going to go meet a few friends. Make sure you clean up before you leave for work. I don't want any mess around the house, got it?" Kim said, giving her a look.

JJ nodded, obediently.

"Good girl. I'll see you later. Make sure you don't get home too late, I want dinner ready by 7." Kim stated, again, giving her a pointed look.

JJ nodded, once again. She was too terrified to even say anything.

"Good. I'll see you later." Kim said as she left without so much as a kiss.

Once she heard the door close and was sure Kim was out of the house, she let the tears make their way down her cheeks.

She finished her breakfast and cleaned the kitchen, making sure everything was in order before going to take a shower.

When she got to the bathroom, she undressed and stepped into the hot shower, letting the water soothe her aching body.

She spent about 30 minutes under the water, just feeling the wonders that a hot shower could do, before she decided to step out.

She grabbed a towel and dried herself off, before getting dressed in her work clothes and heading out to her car, but not before grabbing her badge and gun.

When she finally reached her car, she got in. Placing the key in the ignition, she started driving towards the BAU.

Even though her body still hurt, the hot water had really helped a lot and she felt like she could manage to keep it on the low. She knew that if she didn't let her guard down, nobody would notice.

She sighed as she realized this was going to be an agonizingly slow day.

She continued to drive as once again, tears burned her eyes, but she wouldn't let them fall, not this time. She was almost at the BAU and she couldn't let anybody notice that she'd been crying.

She shook her head as she heard Kim's voice in her head.

 _'You're worthless!'_

 _'A waste of breath!'_

 _'You should feel lucky that I even want to touch you!'_

She shook her head as if to clear the thoughts away.

How had she let it come to this? How had she let it go so far? Who was she kidding? Kim loved her. It was her own fault. All of it was her own fault. If she could just be a good girlfriend, then none of this had to happen. Kim had a reason to do what she did. She was trying to teach her a lesson. She was a worthless piece of crap that nobody else could ever love.

Kim had been hitting her for a while now. A few months. When she got jealous, or if JJ did something she didn't like, then JJ knew what was coming. But then again, it was her own fault, if she just behaved, then Kim wouldn't have to teach her how to.

She took a deep breath and willed the tears to go away as she parked the car in the parking lot and got out, locking it, before heading for the main doors of the BAU.


	4. What's Going On?

**A/N: Come on guys, the reviews are becoming less. Where are you, guys? Let me know how it's going so far! :D**

 **elphiemolizbethbau** \- Thank you, Gabby :) Yeah, bitches like Kim tend to make their partners feel like that. :/

 **helly1bradleywyatt** \- Thank you! I hope you continue to read and review as it goes on. :)

 **rmpcmfan** \- Exactly. That's what I'm trying to make people understand. This is what happens in abusive relationships. Thank you for reviewing! You're a great reviewer! ^.^

 **Kensi1997** \- Thank you so much! I try to make them come out as something that people will sit down and think 'well shit, this really happens.' Thank you for all your positive reviews! You're the best! ^.^

 **T-Rex Ninja Kid** \- Yes she is. I like the idea, but I already have something written for the part where JJ finally realizes something is up. Thanks for the awesome suggestion though! :D And thank you so much for reviewing! You're awesome! :D

* * *

When JJ arrived, she didn't see Emily.

On one hand, that was good because that would give her the amount of time needed to get to her office and sit down. The less movement she made, the less it hurt and that way, she wouldn't cringe or flinch or have any reaction that would make Emily suspect something was going on.

She said good morning to the guys that were doing their paperwork and headed straight to her office.

When she finally got there, she reached for the door, opening it, before closing it again and sitting at her desk, opening a file and starting to work. She decided to leave the blinds closed.

Work was something that got JJ's mind off things, so she enjoyed doing it, since it was something that kept her distracted. At least when she was working, she wasn't thinking about Kim. In any normal relationship, people aren't able to take their minds off their partners because they're in love. In JJ's case, she couldn't take her mind off Kim because she was straight out terrified of her. She was constantly thinking about what she was going to say so she didn't say anything that would anger Kim and she also thought about keeping the house clean. Had she left something out of place? Had she done a good job of cleaning? She was constantly worrying about these things that would make Kim very angry if done wrong.

Kim worked as a desk clerk. She hated her job and constantly took her anger out on JJ. JJ couldn't help but blame herself for that too, even though she couldn't find a logical reason as to why it was her fault, but Kim had told her so many times that all of it was her fault that she started to believe it. Kim also drank a lot, so that made it even easier for her to get angry. JJ didn't know what to do anymore. She was scared, she just wanted to be loved without any pain.

She was interrupted when she heard a knock at her door.

"Come in!" She said as she continued to work on the file she was currently working on.

Emily came in with a bright smile, holding two cups of Starbucks's coffee in her hand.

"Good morning." Emily said with a smile as she walked further into JJ's office.

"Good morning." JJ said as she smiled back.

Somehow, Emily always managed to put a smile on JJ's face, no matter how crappy her previous night had been.

"And this, sunshine, is just for you. Just how you like it." Emily said, winking playfully.

JJ laughed.

"You know just how to make a girl feel special." JJ said, and it was true. Emily knew how to make JJ feel worthy. She knew how to make her feel special.

"I do have a few tricks up my sleeve." Emily said with a small laugh.

For a moment, JJ imagined what it would be like if she was with Emily, but then Kim's words came back to haunt her.

 _'You think that bitch cares about you? She just wants to bang you! As soon as she gets what she wants, she will dispose of you like the worthless piece of shit you are!'_

JJ shook her head, just like she had done while driving to work to try to clear her girlfriend's voice out of her head. She didn't even deserve Emily. Emily deserved someone so much better than her, someone who was actually worthy of her kindness, her love. And what was she even doing thinking about Emily in that way? She had no right whatsoever, and much less when she had a girlfriend already. But a girl could dream, couldn't she?

She shook her head once again to clear the thoughts.

"Hey, are you okay?" She heard Emily ask.

She looked up to see Emily's concerned eyes looking at her. They were much different from Kim's. They were soft and warm. Kim's were cold and hard.

"Uhh, yeah, sorry. I spaced out for few seconds there." JJ said as she forced a chuckle.

"I could tell. Are you sure you're okay?" Emily asked, her eyes still looking at JJ in concern.

"I'm fine, Em. I'm sorry." JJ said as she looked at her desk.

"What are you apologizing for?" Emily asked, confused.

"I-I don't know." Truth is, she did know. It was a habit, because ever since Kim started hitting her and getting angry all the time, those were the words that she used the most.

"Jen, talk to me, what's going on? You have been a little off for a couple of months now. Is everything okay with your girlfriend?" Emily asked. It pained her to speak of another woman as JJ's girlfriend, but she would have to get used to it.

"Yes, of course. I've just been a little stressed lately that's all." JJ answered quickly. A little too quickly for Emily's liking.

"Well...okay." Emily said reluctantly. "But if you ever want to talk, just give me a call or say so. I'm here for you, whatever it is that is stressing you out, you can talk to me about it if you want to. I just want you to know that, okay?" She asked. She wanted to push JJ, but she knew that would do more damage than good. Besides, it wasn't any of her business.

JJ nodded. "Thanks Em, but everything's fine." She lied.

"Okay. I have to go get the rest of my paperwork done. What do you think about going out for lunch in a few hours?" Emily asked.

"Okay, sure." JJ accepted with a smile and without a second thought.

Emily smiled as she said goodbye and left for her own desk, where she still had a stack of files to work through.

She couldn't wait until lunch, she loved spending time with JJ, even if they were just friends, it was enough to keep Emily happy. Little did she know that JJ was thinking the same thing.


	5. Lunch

**A/N: Here you go :) Thanks for the wonderful reviews :)**

 **Kensi1997 -** Thank you so much :) People like you keep me motivated ;)  
 **T-Rex Ninja Kid -** Let's hope she doesn't feel too guilty :S  
 **rmpcmfan -** Maybe, maybe not :P  
 **IniTiniNini -** Thank you! I'm trying not to rush this one, but I don't want to put too many boring chapters, so we'll see if I find a way to manage the two. :D  
 **tlcroft** **-** Like I told you in the PM, that guy is definitely bad news and it'll only get worse. :(  
 **elphiemolizbethbau -** Me too and thank you! :D  
 **serenitaruiz -** Here's the next chapter :) Thank you for your review ^.^  
 **Crdr (Guest) -** Thank you! Everything will work out in time :)

* * *

Before they knew it, it was already noon and time for their lunch break.

Emily closed the file she just finished and got up, heading to JJ's office.

She knocked and opened the door when she heard JJ's voice telling her to come in.

"Ready?" Emily asked with a smile.

JJ smiled and got up, being very careful not to flinch in front of Emily.

She grabbed her stuff and they headed out, making their way to the restaurant a couple of blocks away from the BAU.

"So, how's Sergio?" JJ asked with a smile, knowing that Emily loved talking about her cat.

"He's great. I took him to the vet to get vaccinated the other day." Emily said.

They continued to make small talk until they reached the restaurant.

Finally when they got there, Emily scanned the menu and finally decided on what she was going to get.

She looked at JJ, who didn't even seem to be looking at the menu.

"Do you already know what you're getting?" Emily asked, her eyebrow raised.

"What?" She asked confused, before she remembered she was with Emily and not with Kim. "Oh, right. Yeah, uhm, Fettuccine Alfredo?" JJ sort of asked Emily.

Emily now had two eyebrows raised.

"Why exactly did that come out as a question?" Emily asked with a frown, getting really concerned. JJ hasn't been acting like herself for the last few months. There was something wrong with her, she could feel it. She just needed to find out what.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean for it to come out that way." JJ apologized, again, making Emily even more concerned.

JJ just stared at the table. She was so used to Kim ordering for her that she forgot that she could order for herself when she wasn't with her. She had been under Kim's controlling thumb for so long that she just forgot how to be a normal human being. Kim was right, she was an embarrassment to the human race. She couldn't do anything right.

Emily observed JJ. She knew that JJ was a little shy, but JJ had become even more withdrawn than before in the last couple of months, she wouldn't even go out with them anymore, but she's the only one who seemed to have noticed it. None of the other team members said anything about it, so either they didn't see it, or they thought it was none of their business and just didn't say anything, but still, Morgan at least would've said something to Emily, wouldn't he? And Penelope would definitely have brought it up either to JJ herself, Emily or Morgan.

Just then, a waiter showed up and they both told him what they wanted.

He wrote it down and left, with the promise of returning with their food.

"JJ, listen. I know you said everything's fine, but if something's going on, you can trust me." Emily said.

"It's nothing, really, Em. Just please, leave it alone." JJ begged.

It broke Emily's heart to let it go, but making JJ do something she didn't want to was not something that Emily liked to do, so she left it alone. For now.

"Okay, I'll let it go for now, but if you ever change your mind, just know that you can come to me whenever you feel like talking, day or night, alright?" Emily asked, giving JJ a small smile.

JJ nodded as she looked at Emily with a small smile too.

Just looking into Emily's caring, concerned eyes right in that moment, she felt like telling her everything, but if she did, Kim would kill her. And what if somehow Emily told her it was her own fault? She couldn't handle that, even though she knew it was true.

Just then, she heard a cold voice behind her.

"Hey, Jennifer. I thought you said you'd be working." The voice said as the person laid their hand on JJ's shoulder, pretending to be the loving girlfriend, but only JJ could see it for what it really was. Anger. She felt Kim's fingers squeeze her shoulder and tried her best not to cringe. Emily was still there and she couldn't let her see what was going on.

"Kim?" She asked, turning towards her, her eyes going wide before returning to normal again.

"Well, are you going to introduce me to your friend?" Kim asked, anger seeping through her voice like venom seeping from a snake's mouth.

JJ turned to Emily and Emily noticed a look cross JJ's face momentarily before it was hidden behind a mask.

Emily hoped she was mistaking, but it looked a whole lot like fear. Who was this woman anyways?

"Kim, this is my colleague Emily. Emily, this is my girlfriend Kim." JJ introduced as she noticed Kim's hand let go of her shoulder to shake Emily's hand.

"Nice to meet you." Kim said with a fake happy look, that Emily could see right through. She didn't like this woman already, and jealousy wasn't the reason.

"You too." Emily replied politely, eyeing her suspiciously.


	6. Heading Out Early

**serenitaruiz -** Aww, thank you! I hate Kim too, even though I'm the one that created her.  
 **elphiemolizbethbau -** Maybe, maybe not. We'll see ;)  
 **T-Rex Ninja Kid -** It's just a matter of time... Thanks for your review :D  
 **rmpcmfan -** Well, Emily is Emily and she's a darn great profiler :) **  
** **tlcroft -** Thank you for taking the time to review :) Emily is strong-headed, but she's not stupid :D  
 **Kensi1997 -** Awww! Thank you *.* You are one special reviewer :D  
 **IniTiniNini -** I guess you'll find out in the next chapter, next Saturday B)  
 **Crdr -** Thanks for taking the time to read and review :D I hope you continue to like this story ^.^  
 **Abster Stories -** Thank you so much, but your writing is awesome as well. I really likes your story and I will follow it as you write :) As for JJ, yeah it will take time, but Emily is a very supportive person. I'm sure she'll help her ;) As for her 'punishment', you'll find out what it is in the next chapter on Saturday :D

 **A/N: Thank you for y'all's support :D I love to hear from you! Now, onto the chapter :D :D This is kind of a build up for the next two chapters :)**

* * *

"We'll talk later." Kim said as she patted JJ's back in a warning manner before leaving.

Emily saw JJ close her eyes slightly.

She was just about to ask JJ if she was okay when the waiter came over with their food.

"Here you go." He said with a smile as he put the food on the table in front of the two FBI agents, receiving a thanks before leaving.

Emily waited until he had left before turning to JJ, who seemed to be lost in thought.

"Are you okay?" She asked, concern filling her eyes.

"Yeah. Let's just eat so we can get back to work." JJ said, shaking her head and taking a bite out of her food.

Emily did the same, but watched JJ's every move, every second. Something was definitely going on.

"JJ, I hate to insist, but something is going on, I know it." Emily said after a few minutes of agonizing silence.

"Nothing's going on." JJ said, as she continued to eat.

"Then why did she speak to you like a snake dripping venom?" Emily asked, matter-of-factly.

"Look, Em. She's just a jealous person, okay? She doesn't like to see me with other women, that's all." JJ said. She wasn't lying, but she wasn't telling Emily the whole story either.

"So you can't go and have lunch with a friend now? Sounds a lot like she's controlling you." Emily said, bluntly.

"Her jealousy just gets the best of her sometimes. Just leave it at that, please." JJ pleaded.

Emily took a deep breath.

"Fine, but I know that she's controlling you. Don't think I'm stupid. I can't promise that I won't worry, but I can promise that I'll at least try to back off, but when you feel comfortable talking, you know where to go." Was all that Emily said before leaving the conversation at that.

'I wish she was just controlling me.' JJ thought to herself. She wanted to tell Emily everything, but she couldn't risk it, she just couldn't. Kim would kill her. She knew she was going to get punished for going to lunch with Emily. She had to explain herself to Kim before it got too bad.

They spent the next few minutes in silence as they finished their food.

When they were both done, Emily signaled for the waiter to bring her the check.

"Emily, just let me pay half." JJ insisted as Emily went to pay the bill.

"JJ, I invited you, I'll pay for it. It's nothing, really." Emily said as she paid, leaving no room for arguments.

JJ shut up and muttered. "Fine, but next time it's on me."

Emily smiled as she thought about how cute JJ was when she didn't get her way. She shook her head much like JJ had done earlier to clear those thoughts from her head. JJ had a girlfriend, she had to stop thinking about her like that. Even though she didn't like JJ's girlfriend, she had to respect that the woman was, in fact, JJ's girlfriend.

They walked out and headed back to work. When they got there, they each headed their separate ways, JJ to her office and Emily to her own desk.

A few hours had passed with Emily just thinking about JJ. She was going to find out what was going on, whether JJ wanted her to or not because something was clearly wrong.

A few more hours passed and JJ looked at her watch. It was 5:30 PM. She needed to get home in order to make dinner in time just like Kim told her to.

She closed her files and stood up, cringing as she did. At least she was alone and the blinds were still closed, so there was nobody to see it.

She walked down the stairs over to where the others were.

"Hey guys." She said as she sat on Emily's desk like she always did.

"Hey baby girl." Morgan said.

"Hey." Emily said with a smile.

"I think I'm going to head out for the evening." JJ stated.

"That's a good idea. You know what? You should do the same, Prentiss." Morgan said to Emily.

"And why's that?" Emily asked, confused and with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh nothing special, just the fact that you've been staring at that page for over an hour." Morgan said sarcastically, making JJ raise her eyebrows.

"Right. Yeah, you know what? I think I will." Emily said, accepting Morgan's argument.

"I'll wait for you and we can head out together." JJ said with a small smile.

Emily agreed and grabbed her things before they made their way to the BAU parking lot.

"So, why are you heading out this early?" Emily asked, out of curiosity.

"I have to make dinner for Kim." JJ said nonchalantly.

"Can't she make her own dinner?" Emily asked, surprised at JJ's answer.

"Not again." JJ muttered under her breath as she sighed.

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry." Emily said just as JJ was about to open her car door and hop in.

"Wait, JJ." She waited for JJ to turn around and when she did, she looked into those crystal blue eyes as she spoke. "I care about you, okay? I care about your well-being and I care if you're being mistreated. I might be wrong, but it seems to me that Kim is a little possessive and controlling. And before you protest, look me in the eyes and tell me that I'm wrong." Emily challenged.

JJ tried, but she couldn't lie straight to Emily's face, even though she tried, the words wouldn't come out.

"That's what I thought. It can get worse, Jayje." Emily said, not knowing that it already had. "If you ever need anything, or if you ever want to talk, just let me know. Anything, Jayje, I mean it. I care about you. I do." She said as she grabbed one of JJ's hands and rubbed her thumb over her knuckles gently a few times before letting go.

Tears sprang into JJ's eyes as she got into the car and Emily could swear she heard her say...

"I'm not worth it."


	7. I Don't Want This!

**Guest -** Sometimes people who are being abused hide it very well. You'll understand that as this story goes on. Thanks for your review :)  
 **AbsterStories -** You were right. This one and the next are the worst (so far) chapters of this story. Well, you're right on one of the two possibilities, but I'm not going to tell you which one lol.  
 **T-Rex Ninja Kid -** Maybe, maybe not... I guess you'll just have to wait and see ;)  
 **102000QP -** Thank you :D And thank you for reviewing :)  
 **rmpcmfan -** The question is: Will she? Hahahah  
 **elphiemolizbethbau -** I guess you'll find out what will happen in the next few chapters. ;)  
 **Crdr -** No, thank you for reviewing ;) lol hahah I guess you'll just have to wait and see ;)  
 **Kensi1997 -** Well, here's this chapter and the next will be uploaded Wednesday. I'm glad you like this story :D Hahaha you're just too sweet :P

 **Warning: Sexual Assault! And some swearing.**

 **A/N: This chapter is to kind of prepare you for the next one, because believe me, the next one is worse. Don't read this one or the next if you're sensitive to sexual assault.**

* * *

JJ left the parking lot in her car while Emily made her way to her own.

When Emily finally got home, she put her stuff on the coffee table and sat down on the couch. Sergio immediately sat on her lap waiting for her to give him affection.

She started petting him all the while thinking about JJ.

"Oh Sergio, what am I going to do? Should I go over there?" Emily asked and Sergio just meowed.

"I know this woman is controlling her. If she stays in this relationship, it could get worse. What if she becomes physically abusive towards JJ? I'll kill her if she lays a finger on her." Emily said to her cat. Little did she know she already had.

Sometimes she felt crazy for talking to a cat, but she could talk freely to him without worrying what he will think because it's not like he can talk.

Emily just continued talking to Sergio about her feelings for JJ and how she was sure that it wasn't affecting her judgement.

She hated to admit it, but she had also considered following JJ, just to make sure everything was alright, but she didn't want to invade JJ's privacy like that. She didn't want JJ to think she was a control freak just like Kim. JJ would probably never talk to her again. This was one of those times where she was torn between doing one thing or another and if she were to be honest, she had no idea what to do. Maybe she was overreacting and Kim wasn't going to hurt JJ physically. But still, a controlling relationship was unhealthy and she didn't want JJ to be in a relationship that was like that. Wait, she didn't want? Where did that come from? She had no right to decide what JJ should do or not. JJ was the only one who had that right. She had no idea what she should do.

* * *

Meanwhile, JJ was pulling in at her driveway. She hoped Kim wasn't home yet, so she could figure out what she was going to say to her and how she was going to explain herself.

She unlocked the door, letting herself in before locking it again, only to turn around and find an angry looking Kim standing there with her arms folded across her chest.

"Hey honey." JJ said, forcing herself to slowly walk over to her.

"Took you long enough." Kim said, pushing JJ away roughly when she tried to give her a kiss.

"But I only had to have dinner ready by 7, isn't that what you said?" JJ was worried she had heard wrong and her eyes were wide with fear.

"I thought you had gotten my warning at the restaurant when you were with your...'colleague'...as you call her." Kim said in anger.

"I didn't know I was supposed to come home earlier. I'm sorry." JJ apologized, her eyes moisturizing as she looked at Kim with pleading eyes.

"Please don't hurt me Kim. Please." JJ begged as she looked at Kim, hoping Kim wouldn't hurt her. She didn't think she could stand anymore pain. It was hard enough to get through the day without letting on that she was hurting, but taking more punches on top of her already bruised skin, she didn't think she could manage to pretend she wasn't hurting in front of Emily. A part of her wondered if it would really be that bad if she stopped pretending.

"Oh shut up you whiny little bitch." Kim said as she slapped JJ across the face. Kim knew that slaps wouldn't leave marks the next day and she enjoyed slapping JJ.

"Please Kim, I'm begging you." JJ said as the tears made their way down JJ's cheeks.

To anyone else, the sight would have been heart breaking, but to Kim, it was exciting.

She slapped JJ again causing her to lose balance as she fell to her knees. Kim stood over JJ and felt a sense of power she never felt before. She started getting turned on watching JJ on her knees in front of her. It gave her a new sense of control.

"Just a colleague, huh? Why were you having lunch with her? Didn't I already tell you I didn't want you near her? You stupid bitch! You know what? I don't think you're learning your lessons, I think we should try a different tactic, what do you think?" Kim said as she grabbed JJ's hair and forced her to look up at her.

JJ didn't know what Kim had in mind but whatever it was, it wasn't going to be good.

She tried getting up off her knees, but Kim pushed her back down again.

"You stay right there and you only get up when I tell you to, do you understand?" Kim ordered.

JJ couldn't even nod, she just let the tears fall. She felt so humiliated.

"Tonight, you're going to be my slutty little bitch and you're going to do everything I tell you to." Kim said with an evil smirk.

"Get up." Kim said as she pulled on JJ's hair in order to make her stand up.

JJ yelped in pain and got up off her knees.

"Good girl. You're going to learn to never open your fucking legs to anyone else but me." Kim said as she dragged JJ up the stairs with her to their bedroom. She was still convinced that JJ had cheated on her with Emily.

She threw JJ on the bed and JJ immediately got up off it once she realized what Kim wanted.

"Kim, stop. I don't want this." JJ said as she tried to find a way to get out of the situation she was in.

"Shut up you little whore. You want to act like a worthless slut then I'm going to turn you into one. This is all you're good for, but lately you've been worthless for this too, but I'm going to teach you a lesson." Kim said as she once again threw JJ on the bed, immediately getting on top of her, preventing her from getting off the bed.

"Kim! Stop! I don't want this!" JJ cried as she tried to fight Kim off.

She couldn't believe this was happening. She had never been forced to have sex before. She was more scared than ever.

"Shut up!" Kim said as she started undressing JJ roughly. She practically tore her clothes off like a wild animal and JJ was so scared. She couldn't remember ever being this scared in her life.

Once JJ was naked, Kim sat on top of her abdomen to hold her down, straddling her, while she handcuffed her hands to the bedpost with JJ's own handcuffs. That just made JJ feel worse.

JJ had never felt so many emotions at once in her life. She was scared, embarrassed, angry, hurt, powerless, weak, humiliated...She felt so many things at once and she couldn't do anything about what was happening. Kim was so much stronger than she was. Even though she tried, she couldn't get Kim to stop.

"Please, Kim. Don't do this to me." JJ cried as more tears spilled down her cheeks. She was shaking like a leaf. Her whole body was shaking from fear and Kim knew that, but Kim liked to play psychological games with JJ's head.

"Oh, look at that, you're already shaking with arousal, baby." Kim said with a smirk.

"I'm not aroused! I'm just-I'm just...s-scared." JJ sobbed as she continued to shake.

"We're going to have a lot of fun tonight." Kim said as she let out an extremely evil, twisted laughed.


	8. No! Stop! You're Hurting Me!

**becarefulcontentspriceless -** Well, here's the next chapter. Find out for yourself ;) Thanks for the review :D  
 **serenitaruiz -** Como ya he dicho, voy tentar transmitir la realidad. Gracias por su comentario. :D  
 **elphimolizbethbau -** This one is even worse. Thanks, it was really hard to write though. Here's the next one. :)  
 **Kensi1997 -** Here's the next chapter. Get ready to read it, this one's even more powerful than the last. Thanks ^.^  
 **.90 -** Well, I guess it's time you find out. :)  
 **MochaGirl14 -** Thanks :) That is my intention in writing this story, to make people feel the pain they go through.  
 **helly1bradleywyatt -** Thanks! Well, find out in this chapter. :)  
 **102000QP -** Thanks for the review. Maybe she will, maybe she won't. Keep reading to find out ;)  
 **rmpcmfan -** Well, find out what's going to happen in this chapter. Thanks for the review :D  
 **ThunderKlaus89 -** Thank you, I update every Wednesday and Saturday. I hope you continue to review. Those keep me motivated to write more ;)  
 **AbsterStories -** Thanks, you'll just have to wait for future chapters to see what happens to Kim. lol, the 'Sergio needs to tell Emily...' comment made me laugh haha. He's a cat lol. Yes, this one's hard, so prepare yourself.  
 **Guest (The one who said that he/she hated Kim) -** Well, you'll have to find out in this chapter :) Let me know what you think.  
 **Guest (The one that said this had them in absolute tears) -** It's pretty hard to read and this one's even worse. Thank you for the review and let me know what you think.

 **Guest (The one that commented about sexual assault) -** I don't take the comment as you being a jerk lol and I don't want you to take my response as it either, but you should've probably done more research before saying that. Sexual assault _does_ include rape, but that chapter wasn't about rape, it was the beginning of a rape which is considered a sexual assault, but even if it was rape, I could have said Sexual Assault anyways. Here's the definition of Sexual Assault:

"Sexual assault is any type of forced or coerced sexual contact or behavior that happens without consent. Sexual assault includes rape and attempted rape, child molestation, and sexual harassment or threats."

So yeah, it includes rape, therefore rape = sexual assault. I don't mean to be a jerk either, but you're wrong and the definition of Sexual Assault proves it. Thank you for your review though, I love to hear from all of you! :D

* * *

 **Warning: Really vivid description of rape. (Detailed). You've been warned.**

 **A/N: Hardest chapter ever! I can't believe how hard it was to write this. It took me 4 days to complete it. I think it's mostly because this time the attacker is a woman and me being a woman too just can't understand how a girl can do this to another girl, but it does happen. Anyways, on to the story...**

 **A/N #2: *GAGS* I think I'm going to *GAGS* puke *VOMITS ALL OVER*.**

* * *

JJ continued to struggle as she sobbed.

Kim got off her and just when JJ thought that she had realized that what she was doing was wrong, she came back, completely naked, wearing a sex toy.

It was a pretty big strap-on. Now JJ knew that Kim was in her right mind because JJ had told her before that she hated sex toys and that a strap-on was the one thing she hated the most.

JJ's eyes grew wide as Kim came closer. She jumped on the bed roughly and got on top of JJ.

Kim wanted power, this was giving her all the power she wanted.

"Do you know how long I've been waiting for you to service me like this?" Kim asked as she laughed, evilness in her eyes.

JJ pulled against the handcuffs securing her to the bed. She twisted her body trying to get free. She continued to toss and turn trying to get away from the situation she was in.

"Don't pull too much on the handcuffs. You don't want to have marks for anybody to see, now do you?" Kim taunted her.

"Please Kim. You know I hate that, don't do this to me. Please don't hurt me." JJ's voice broke and she started sobbing again while she wished she was anywhere but here.

"Shh, baby. You're going to like it." Kim said with a smirk.

Kim adjusted herself so that she was positioned right where she wanted and started to push herself roughly inside JJ.

JJ screamed out in pain since she was tight, not wet and definitely not used to sex with toys. She clenched her fists tightly, her fingernails digging into her own skin. She wanted to die, to pass out or anything to make this stop.

"Stop, Kim! You're hurting me! You're hurting me!" JJ sobbed as she closed her eyes, trying to recall good memories with Emily to take her mind off what was happening to her.

"Nuh-uh-uh. You're lucky I even want to touch you at all! You're so disgusting that nobody but me wants to touch you!" Kim said as she slapped JJ across the face and grabbed her hips roughly, squeezing hard while continuing to pound into her.

"Please Kim, please!" JJ cried.

"Please what? You want more?" Kim asked, knowing that was not what JJ wanted at all.

"NO! NO!" JJ cried desperately. "I want you to stop! PLEASE! STOP!" She screamed.

JJ felt blood trickle down her inner thigh as she sobbed.

Kim bent down and bit down roughly on JJ's skin, sinking her teeth into it, drawing blood.

JJ screamed out as she sobbed. She didn't know what to do. She had never felt so lost, so weak and so helpless in her life.

She was in so much pain. She wished it had just been a beating. She couldn't deal with this.

'I wish I told Emily everything. Yes, Kim would've killed me, but I prefer death over this. Why doesn't she just kill me and get it over with?' JJ thought to herself as she cried.

Kim continued to roughly pound into JJ, her terrified screams bringing her close to the edge.

She sunk her teeth once again into JJ's skin, leaving another mark and drawing blood before she gripped JJ's neck tightly with one hand, squeezing it, making JJ start gasping for air.

"Oh God baby, I'm so close! You're a good girl. Good girl." She said as she pleasured herself while pounding faster and faster until finally, she stopped.

Her breathing was out of normal and she collapsed on top of JJ, letting go of her neck.

JJ took deep breaths and lay there, helpless, tears slipping down her cheeks. It didn't even seem real. Was it finally over?

"Good girl. See? That wasn't so bad, now was it? I hope you learned your lesson now." Kim said as she pulled out of JJ and got up, un-cuffing her.

"You know, since you were a good girl, I'll even let you take the bed tonight. I don't want to sleep in blood stained sheets. Oh and make sure you clean yourself up." Kim said, heartlessly, as she left the room.

JJ just felt numb. She couldn't even cry anymore. She felt like all the emotions had left her body and she was left feeling nothing. That was until she started feeling anger. She felt so much anger and hatred towards Kim. She hated her for what she had done to her.

She looked down and noticed that she was still bleeding a little bit. She grabbed her cell phone and typed a quick message.

'Are you awake? JJ xx"

'Yeah. Can't sleep, what's up? Em xx'

'Can you meet me at the park near my house? I know it's late, but I really need to tell you something.'

'Yeah, sure. I'll meet you there soon. Everything okay?'

'I'll tell you when you get here. xoxo'

'Okay. xoxo'

JJ put her cellphone on her bedside table and got up. It hurt to even move and even more to walk. She felt like her insides were on fire. This was it. She was done. She was going to tell Emily everything. If Kim found out and killed her, well, at least she wouldn't be in pain anymore.

'Is death really that bad?' She thought to herself.

She couldn't take the pain anymore. This was the final straw.

She wanted to shower so badly, but she wanted to get out of there even more, so she just skipped the shower. She just put her clothes back on, grabbed her cellphone and went out through the back door, so that Kim wouldn't be able to hear her leave, grabbing her go-bag along the way.

She didn't know how to feel about this. Was it her own fault? She had been saying 'no' to Kim whenever she wanted sex, but rape? Did she really deserve to be forced to have sex? Maybe she did.

She was having second thoughts about telling Emily.

She was in so much pain. She was sure that Kim had torn something. She kept feeling blood and she could barely walk. When she got to the park, Emily was already there.

Emily got out of the car as soon as she spotted JJ.

She noticed JJ was having trouble walking, so she went over to help her.

"JJ, are you okay?" Emily asked, worried.

JJ just shook her head and that's when Emily saw the tear tracks on her face.

"What happened? Talk to me, honey." Emily said. It was killing her to see JJ in this state.

JJ just shook her head as she started crying. Turns out she did still have emotions pent up inside of her and when she saw Emily, she just wanted to be wrapped up in her arms. She never wanted to feel the kind of pain she felt tonight, ever again.

Emily stopped and looked at her.

"JJ, hey, it's okay, don't cry. I'm going to pick you up and put you in the car, is that okay with you?" Emily asked gently, seeing that JJ was having a really hard time walking.

JJ just nodded as Emily gently picked her up bridal-style.

JJ wrapped her arms around Emily's neck and buried her face there, crying as Emily continued to carry her over to the car, placing her on the passenger seat.

She wrapped her arms around JJ and rubbed gentle circles on her back, patiently waiting for JJ to let go of her emotions before starting with the questions.

"It's going to be okay. You're going to be okay." Emily said as she soothed JJ.

She had no idea what happened, but she knew it was bad.

 **A/N: Off I go to puke my guts out. Who else did the same and punched a wall right after? I considered doing just a vague description, but no...I want people to know that this happens. I want people to see how they feel. Hell, I want to change the world, but since I can't shoot every fucking rapist/child molester/murderer/abuser...I'll settle for writing about them. Rant over. Thank you for reading (if you did).**


	9. Going to the Hospital

**helly1bradleywyatt -** It was! It was one of the hardest chapters I have written. Thanks though, I'm glad I did a good job at bringing the issue to the surface. Thanks for the review! :D  
 **serenitaruiz -** Yo tambien odio a Kim. Gracias por su comentario. Es mi intencion hacer con que las personas entiendan lo que se passa en el mundo.  
 **AbsterStories -** I don't want you to feel like you have to read these chapters, they're tough. Yeah, I couldn't leave you guys with this chapter without at least one good thing. Thanks for the review!  
 **becarefulcontentspriceless -** Thank you for the review! Here's the next chapter! ^.^  
 **elphiemolizbethbau -** Well, here's the next chapter. It's a Emily/JJ interaction. :)  
 **Guest -** I'm sorry I made you cry. Maybe she will tell Emily, maybe she won't. I think it's time for you to find out! ;)  
 **102000QP -** Thanks for the review!Find out if she will or not. :D  
 **tlcroft -** That's why I was conflicted between writing it or not, but I decided to go with it so that people sit down and think 'crap, this happens and that is how they feel'. Thanks for the review!  
 **Kensi1997 -** Thanks! I know the feeling of wanting to puke your guts out after a chapter like this. Believe me, it's not easy to write, but someone has to do it to show people that this happens. :)  
 **rmpcmfan -** Well, I guess you'll have to stick around to see what happens. :D Thanks for the review!

* * *

"I'm sorry, Em. I'm so sorry." JJ apologized as she let go of Emily.

"Sweetheart, look at me. You have absolutely nothing to be sorry for." Emily said.

JJ then noticed she had wet Emily's shirt. She looked at Emily, terrified and backed away from her as far as the car seat allowed her to.

Emily was confused. She looked at where JJ was staring and noticed her shirt was wet, but why did JJ seem so afraid of that?

"JJ? Are you okay?" Emily asked, her eyebrows coming together in concern.

"I'm sorry. I-I got your shirt wet. I'm sorry. I'm so worthless, I can't do anything right, I don't deserve anything good." JJ muttered, but Emily understood every word and it made her heart ache.

"Jen, look at me." Emily said and gently put two fingers under JJ's chin, guiding her to meet her eyes. She found fear and pain in the other woman's eyes.

"You're not worthless, you didn't do anything wrong, it's okay that you wet my shirt. I'm not mad. You're worth the world, JJ. You deserve everything good in this world because you're such a wonderful person. Don't ever doubt that, okay?" Emily assured, but JJ was having none of it.

"No I'm not, I'm a worthless piece of shit that has no use except for sex." JJ repeated the words she had been hearing over and over for months. The words that Kim had put into her head.

Emily was shocked, if it were possible, her jaw would be on the floor right now.

"JJ, listen to me." Emily started a little forcefully, but not as much as to scare JJ. "That is not true. You deserve to be loved, you deserve to be cared for. Is that what your girlfriend told you? Has she told you those things?" Emily asked.

JJ nodded. "But it's true, Em. She's right."

Emily shook her head. "No, it's not true, JJ. It's not." She insisted.

JJ tried to stop the tears as they formed again.

"Em, I think I need to go to the hospital." JJ said in a voice just above a whisper.

"Where are you hurt?" Emily asked as she ran her hand comfortingly up and down JJ's arm.

"I-I can't. Please, don't make me tell you." JJ said as she looked at Emily with tears in her eyes.

"Okay, okay, you don't have to tell me. It's okay." Emily said as she waited for JJ to put her legs inside the car, before closing the passenger door and going over to the other side, getting into the driver's seat.

"How bad is the pain, Jayje?" Emily asked as she started driving.

"Kind of bad." JJ said with a cringe.

Emily knew that JJ could handle pain, so if she was saying that it was kind of bad, then it was bad. Really bad.

"Why didn't you tell me you needed to go to the hospital in the beginning?" Emily asked, turning on the sirens as she sped to the hospital.

"I didn't want to give you anymore trouble than I already had. I thought I could deal with it. I'm sorry." JJ said, apologizing.

"JJ, you don't have to apologize. You're never a trouble to me. I promise. Did Kim hurt you?" Emily already knew the answer to that, but she needed confirmation.

JJ didn't know if she should answer honestly. Kim was going to kill her. Should she tell Emily the truth or keep it to herself and make up an excuse as to why she needed to go to the hospital? She should just keep quiet...that was probably best for all of them.

'No.' JJ thought to herself. 'I can't let this go on. I'm an FBI agent. I should stand up for myself. I _have_ to stand up for myself. I need to tell Emily.' She thought.

Finally, she blinked back the tears as she nodded.

"She's going to kill me, Em. Maybe I should just go home and pretend like this never happened." JJ said, she was really scared of what Kim might do if she found out that she was with Emily.

"Jen, honey, she's not going to lay a single finger on you. I won't let her hurt you anymore. She's done enough of that already." Emily said as she practically growled the last part, her grip on the steering wheel getting tighter and tighter, making her knuckles turn white.

"Em?" JJ asked in a scared, small voice.

"Yeah, Jayje?" Emily asked carefully. She was feeling a lot of anger towards JJ's girlfriend. To say she wanted to kill her was an understatement. She was going to make her pay for whatever she did to JJ, even though she didn't know what that was exactly. All she knew was that Kim had hurt JJ physically.

"Are you mad at me?" She asked, sounding more like a 5 year old little girl.

"What? No, of course not." Emily said, immediately.

"Then why are you gripping the steering wheel like you're mad? I'm sorry." JJ asked, before apologizing, as if she was walking on eggshells.

Emily loosened her grip on the steering wheel, glancing at JJ, and took her right hand off it, grabbing JJ's and rubbing her thumb over JJ's knuckles, slowly, but not before she noticed how JJ flinched, but then relaxed at Emily's touch.

"I'm not mad at you, I promise. I'm just mad at that bitch for hurting you and telling you those things. Now I may not know what happened exactly, but I know that she hurt you physically and right after the hospital, we're going to call the team for back up and I'm going to arrest her. I'm not one to tell a woman what to do, but I'm not going to let you go back to her, JJ. I'm not going to just stand around while she hurts you. I just can't do that." Emily said as she tried to keep her emotions under control.

On one hand, JJ didn't want Emily to arrest her because then she would kill JJ and hurt her even worse than she already had. But on the other hand, she wanted Emily to arrest her because then, she wouldn't have to suffer any more pain at the hands of Kim. No more nights like tonight and she saw how Kim had enjoyed hurting her tonight and she was sure that if she went back, she was going to do it more often and JJ knew she couldn't handle it.

JJ just nodded. Why was Emily being so nice to her? She didn't deserve it.

JJ's thoughts continued as she looked out the window, tears slipping down her face and finding comfort in the hand that was currently in hers, slowly soothing her knuckles with her thumb.

"Jayje, we're here, come on." Emily said as she helped JJ out of the car and into the hospital. Emily would've carried her, but she knew how much JJ hated looking helpless in front of other people.

They went to the front desk and explained that JJ needed a doctor. The nurse immediately nodded and took off to go get one. The emergency room was almost empty. Seemed like a slow day for the hospital staff.

When they were outside of a hospital room about to go in, JJ turned to Emily.

"Could you, maybe...uhm...stay here?" JJ asked, her voice giving away the fear she had of Emily being mad at her.

"Yes, of course, I'll be right out here if you need me." Emily said. She wanted to be there for JJ, but she knew that JJ didn't want her to know what happened just yet.

Emily saw the relieved look that crossed JJ's eyes.

"Thank you." She breathed as she went into the hospital room with the doctor.

Emily looked around and took a seat in one of the chairs that were there. She wanted to be in there with JJ, but she knew JJ needed her space and she knew that if she insisted, JJ would feel obligated to let her come in with her and the last thing Emily wanted was for JJ to feel like Emily was forcing her to do something she didn't want to do, in this case, go in with her.

She thought about all the things JJ had told her, so far.

So, from what she speculated, Kim had been verbally, emotionally, psychologically and now physically abusive towards JJ. She was definitely going to kill the bitch. She couldn't wait to see the look on her face when she arrested her and put her behind bars. She was going to make her pay for whatever she had done to JJ.

Little did Emily know that it was worse than what she was thinking. Little did she know that the physical abuse wasn't just tonight, it had been happening for a while now. Little did she know that it went beyond just verbal and physical abuse. It had just turned into sexual abuse.


	10. Because I Care

**AbsterStories -** Here's that update I promised you. Don't worry, JJ won't be left alone. Thanks for the review! :D  
 **becarefulcontentspriceless -** Hahahah stick around and you'll see it. Thanks for the review! :P  
 **Guest -** I'm sorry you had to go through that. I'm really glad you got out of that situation before it got worse. Hahaha yes, she is. Thanks for the review! :)  
 **102000QP -** Yeah, she took the first step, which is asking for help. Stick around to see where it goes from here. Thanks for the review! ^.^  
 **elphiemolizbethbau -** Thanks for the review! Hahahah, well, you'll have that chapter pretty soon. XD  
 **serenitaruiz -** Gracias por su comentario. Aqui tiene lo proximo capitulo. :-J  
 **Kensi1997 -** Thank you! I love to her from you. Here's the next chapter. Thanks for the review! =]  
 **T-Rex Ninja Kid -** I haven't even thought about the medical file. I don't know if I'll mention it. I don't really want to make this about the team. I want to make it solely based on JJ and Emily and Jj wll tell Emily when she's ready. Thanks for the review! =)  
 **Crdr -** Thanks for the review! Glad you understand the part about puking guts out. I hope you continue to review when you can! =P  
 **frs -** Hahahah I guess you'll have to stick around to see that part ;D Thanks for the review! ^.^

* * *

Emily got up when she heard the door open. The doctor turned to her and told her she could go in.

She thanked the doctor and entered the room, walking towards the bed and sitting on the edge of it, facing JJ and taking her hand.

"Are you okay?" Emily asked.

JJ nodded unconvincingly, evidence that she'd been crying clearly visible.

Emily didn't know what possessed her, but she felt like JJ needed the love, so she leaned forward and kissed her forehead before wrapping her up in a hug, feeling her tense up in her arms.

JJ wrapped her arms around Emily, relaxing into the embrace and laying her head on her shoulder. She managed to keep the tears back, but was finding it hard to. She wished that Kim had just held her like Emily did instead of hurting her. She wished Kim didn't just hurt her, but she knew it wasn't all Kim's fault. She made Kim angry, it was on her.

"You shouldn't arrest Kim." JJ said in a quiet voice once they pulled apart.

"What?" Emily asked, she couldn't believe what she had just heard.

"It was my fault. I made her angry. It's on me." JJ said as she stared at her hands and played with a fiber on the hospital blanket.

Emily sighed. JJ was blaming herself for everything and had very low confidence.

"JJ, it's not on you. It's not your fault. If she's angry then she should go take a walk and cool off or find a wall and take it out on there, not on you. You're not a punching bag JJ and you have more use than just for what you said earlier. I'm not even going to repeat it because it's so ridiculous and untrue. This was in no way your fault and I will help you see that. That's not the way you should be treated. You should be treated like a princess and that's not the way she's treating you." Emily said.

"But-" JJ started, only to be cut off by Emily.

"But nothing. This wasn't your fault at all. I don't know what happened tonight and I won't force you to talk to me, but when you feel comfortable, I want you to know that you can trust me." Emily said.

"I trust you, I'm just not ready to talk yet. Are you mad?" JJ asked as she raised her eyes to look at Emily, and in the lights of the hospital room, Emily noticed the bruise on JJ's neck that looked like someone had gripped her neck. It made her sick. She shook her head sadly as she tried not to think of the possibilities of what could have happened.

"No, I'm not mad, sweetheart. I promise." Emily said as she sat next to JJ and pulled her into a hug, JJ's head resting against her chest.

"I promise you she won't ever touch you again." Emily said and JJ's reaction made her worry a lot. JJ clenched her legs together, tightly.

Had this bitch forced JJ to have sexual intercourse? She didn't even want to know the answer to that. She would kill Kim. She would beat the crap out of her.

"It's going to be okay." Emily said as she ran her hand through JJ's hair.

"Why do you care so much?" JJ asked as her voice broke.

"Because I care about you and I want you to be happy. I don't like seeing you crying or hurt." Emily admitted.

 _'Nobody cares about you. You're worthless.'_

JJ remembered Kim's words.

"But why?" JJ pushed for an answer.

"Because you're worth it." Emily said in a whisper.

"No, I'm not." JJ whispered back.

"Yes you are, and one day you will realize that. You're not any of those bad things that Kim said. You're not worthless, I promise. You're worth the world and you deserve somebody that will love you and cherish you, not someone who abuses and hurts you. You deserve to be treated better than a queen. I know you don't believe that right now because of all those things that bitch said to you, but I promise one day you'll look back and you'll know that she didn't deserve you and you didn't deserve to be treated like that at all." Emily said as she continued to comfort JJ.

JJ felt like she didn't deserve it, but she couldn't help but like the affection she was receiving. And coming from Emily, it made it that much better. She loved Emily more than Emily would ever know, what she didn't know was that Emily held the same feelings for her.

"When can you get out of here?" Emily asked after a few minutes of silence.

"Tomorrow morning." JJ said in a whisper.

"Jen, honey, the team and I need to go arrest Kim, can I call Penelope to stay with you while I go? I promise I'll be back soon." Emily said. She didn't want to leave JJ, but she had to see that bitch for herself and cuff her.

JJ nodded. She knew that Emily wanted to make the arrest, so she agreed to let Penelope stay with her for a little while.

Emily made the call before sitting down on the bed next to JJ again, this time, JJ's head rested on Emily's stomach.

* * *

Soon enough, Penelope was knocking on the hospital room's door.

"Oh, Gumdrop, are you okay?" She asked as she came to JJ's side.

JJ still had her head on Emily's stomach, but moved so Emily could leave.

"What happened?" She asked in worry at JJ.

"It's a long story, Pen. I don't want to talk about it right now." JJ said as she shook her head.

"Pen, just let it go." Emily said shaking her head to Garcia, telling her to back off. "I'll be back soon, okay?" Emily said as she kissed the top of JJ's head.

JJ nodded. "Be careful." She was afraid that Kim might hurt Emily, but she wasn't about to tell her what to do, so she let her go.

"I will, I promise." Emily said before she left.

Penelope turned to JJ with a smile on her face.

"What?" JJ asked.

"Nothing." Penelope said as she continued to smile.

"Come on, tell me, Pen." JJ whined. She wasn't afraid of Garcia, she didn't know why she was afraid of Emily though. Maybe it was because she had a similar build to Kim and was much stronger than her. She didn't know, but Emily would never hurt her, would she?

"Okay, okay. She loves you, you know?" Penelope said with a smile.

"Who? Kim?" JJ asked confused, since she had told her about Kim. Garcia was one of the few people that knew of Kim's existence in JJ's life.

"Of course not." Garcia said, exasperated, having already heard from Emily that Kim hurt JJ. Emily had asked JJ what she should tell Garcia and JJ had told her to tell her what happened, that Kim had hurt her. Garcia was her best friend, she trusted her with these things.

"Then who?" JJ asked, confused.

"Emily." Garcia said, simply with a smile.

"What? No way! I wish!" JJ scoffed as she shook her head.

"She told me. Don't tell her I told you that or she'll kill me, but she does JJ, you just don't see it." Garcia said.

JJ contemplated what Garcia said. Had Emily really told Penelope that she loved her? That couldn't be possible, could it? No, it couldn't. Nobody could possibly love her. She was worthless and unworthy of any love, so she just shook the thought away, although she wished it was true.

 _'She just wants to bang you. As soon as she gets what she wants, she'll dispose of you like the piece of shit you are.'_

But Emily wasn't like that, was she? No, she wasn't. JJ knew she wasn't, but she couldn't help the small part of her that believed she was.

JJ's thoughts continued as she fell asleep with Penelope there, holding her hand.


	11. The Arrest

**102000QP -** Hahaha well, check it out. The chapter has finally arrived lol. Thanks for the review!  
 **serenitaruiz -** Hahaha, aqui tiene lo proximo capitulo. Enjoy! Thanks for the review!  
 **elphiemolizbethbau -** Well, here it is. It has finally arrived hahah Thanks for the review!  
 **Kensi1997 -** Hahahha that is a crazy coincidence and it kind of creeps me out lol. I lmao'd at the 'she should be a Julie' part hahah! I hope you post the story, I'd love to read it! Thanks for the review!  
 **AbsterStories -** Hhaha thanks! Well, here's the next chapter and if you stick around, you might see some more Jemily ;) hahaha Thanks for the review!  
 **Crdr -** Lol, I understand. Some chapters are longer, others shorter, depends on what ideas comes to my mind and all that. I hope you enjoy the story anyways and sorry for the short chapters. Thanks for the review!  
 **Guest -** Here's the next chapter.  
 **Sinca -** Hahaha you're fine lol I like when people get excited about my stories lol hahah.

 **A/N: A HUGE thank you to _Sinca._ She has proof read this chapter and corrected a few things that weren't right, like grammar, certain phrases that were worded wrong, etc. So, Sinca, thank you so much! :D**

* * *

Meanwhile, Emily was driving to JJ's house, her hands clenched on the steering wheel. She was pissed. She wanted to kill Kim. She wanted to make her pay for what she had done to JJ.

The team was driving right behind her, the only thing they knew was that JJ's girlfriend had abused her. They, just like Emily, didn't know how. They just knew that JJ had been hurt by this woman.

Emily was the first to pull up near the house. They had decided to keep the sirens off as to not alert Kim.

They got out of the cars and drew their guns. Since it was JJ's house, they could unlock the door and go in without facing charges of breaking and entering.

Emily pulled out the key she had and opened the door quietly.

"Surprise bitch." Emily mumbled quietly as she entered the house first. She found Kim asleep on the couch.

Emily smirked and went over to her, grabbing her by the collar of her shirt and pulling her up, waking her in the process.

"FBI, don't move." Emily growled, immediately identifying herself.

Kim looked at her in confusion before taking a swing at her. Emily ducked just in the nick of time before she grabbed Kim and threw her against the wall, cuffing her roughly.

"Doesn't feel too good being on that end of the table, now does it?" Emily said through gritted teeth as she pushed her once again against the wall, earning her a grunt.

"Shut up bitch, you're just jealous. But you know what? I'll let you bang her if you let this slide. You know, she's so tight. It feels wonderful to fuck that little bitch." Kim said, tauntingly.

"Shut up! Don't talk about her like that. She's not a sex toy to be played with! She deserves to be loved!" Emily said as she got angrier with each word that came out of Kim's mouth.

"Oh, yeah, sure. Do you really think she believes that? By now, she probably believes that she's just a worthless whore that doesn't deserve anything. You know, she's probably so confused right now, that anything besides pain would feel weird. Oh and I told her that you just wanted to bang her and once you got what you wanted you would just dispose of her like the worthless piece of shit she is. I told her that's all she's good for and after a while of telling her the same thing over and over again, she started believing it." Kim said with a smirk. She knew JJ had a thing for Emily and vice-versa and that angered Kim to no end. She also knew that by saying these things she could end up in prison since she was confessing, but they had no proof she had confessed, just Emily's word and since Emily is close to JJ, it would be one's word against the other's.

Emily knew she was trying to get a rise out of her and to be honest, it was working. She was pushing every possible button. Emily took a deep breath to keep calm.

"Kimberly Stephenson, you're under arrest. You have the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you in the court of law." Emily said as she continued to read Kim her rights as the others finished clearing the rest of the house.

Emily led the culprit through the living room allowing Kim to walk straight into the half closed door on the way outside. Well, she didn't exactly 'walk into it', but Emily wasn't about to admit that.

"OW!" She yelped.

"Oops, I'm sorry, I didn't see the door. I should really be more careful next time." Emily said sarcastically, with a smirk watching the blood oozing out of Kim's nose.

"You did that on purpose, you bitch!" Kim screamed at her.

"Me? Of course not, why would I do that?" Emily feigned innocence, making Morgan chuckle as he watched the scene unfold.

"What are you laughing at?" Kim said to Morgan.

"At you. You picked the wrong girl to mess with, you see, if there wasn't a big risk of going to prison, Emily would've beaten the crap out of you and killed you. I guarantee you that." Morgan said as Emily handed Kim off to Hotch, roughly, so he could lead her to a police car.

"Guys, can you come in here?!" They heard Reid call.

"Where are you, kid?!" Morgan called out as he and Emily made their way through the house.

"In JJ's bedroom!" Reid called back.

They ascended the stairs and soon enough, they were in the bedroom where Reid was.

"What is it?" Emily asked.

Reid just pointed to the bed.

When Emily saw blood on the sheets, she felt like throwing up. She felt physically sick to her stomach. What the hell had happened to JJ?

Morgan had a feeling of anger rise through him, but he wasn't nearly as angry as Emily was.

"It could be menstrual blood." Reid offered, trying to give some sort of comfort.

"I think we all know that it's not." Was all Emily said before dashing out of the room.

She got outside, went over to the car where Kim was in, opened the door and pulled her out.

"What did you do to her, you fucking bitch?!" Emily screamed as she threw Kim against the car.

"What are you talking about?" Kim asked, confused.

"What am I talking about?! How about the blood on the sheets?! Huh?! I'll kill you!" Emily screamed at Kim, ready to throw a punch.

By now, Hotch and Morgan were pulling Emily back before she did something stupid.

"I'll kill you!" Emily repeated as Morgan dragged her into the house.

"Are you trying to get yourself put in jail?! What the hell, Emily?!" Morgan asked as he sat with her on the couch.

"What did she do to her, Morgan?" Emily asked, brokenly, as she let a tear slip down her cheek. Her voice broke as she rested her head in her hands.

"I don't know Emily, but right now, you need to be there for JJ. She needs you. She loves you, Emily. She said so. Penelope told me." Morgan said.

"She's scared of me, Derek." Emily said as she wiped the tear away and shook her head.

"Well, can you blame her? Whatever this bitch did to her messed her up. You'll just have to show her that you're not Kim and that you will never hurt her. You need to make her believe that, Emily, no matter what it takes or how long it takes. You need to make her see that you're nothing like Kim." Morgan said.

"And I need to make her see that she's not worthless." Emily added.

"Exactly. We'll take care of the rest here, you just go see JJ and take care of her. Show her that she's cared for, Emily." Morgan said.

"I know she's not ready to pursue a relationship yet, but I'll make sure as hell she knows she's loved." Emily said with a smile. "Without crossing the line." She added, her face hardening.

"I think that's a great plan. Just show her that not everybody is like Kim. One step at a time." Morgan said with a smile.

Emily smiled. Morgan was right. She would take it slow, she would show her affection, but she would not cross the line until she knew that the blonde was ready for a new relationship.

She stood up and nodded to Morgan with a smile.

"Thanks Derek." Emily said as Morgan stood up and gave her a hug.

"Any time Emily, any time." He said as he let go and she left.

As she headed for her car, the only thing she could think about was JJ and how much she loved her.

She would make JJ believe in herself again, even if it took her an entire lifetime to do so.

 **A/N: I know you guys wanted to see a little more of Emily beating Kim's ass. I did too, but although Emily loves JJ, she's still a federal agent and can't straight out punch Kim in the face, so I settled for her 'accidentally' walking Kim into the door. Hahahh hope you enjoyed reading this story as much as I enjoyed writing it! :D**


	12. Love Doesn't Hurt

**A/N: Yay! A hundred reviews! Thank you so much! Since you guys helped me get to a hundred reviews, here's an early chapter!**

 **elphiemolizbethbau -** Thanks for the review! Glad you liked it!  
 **.90 -** Hahaha I wish I could do that, but Emily would end up in jail and that would not be the best thing right now. Thanks for the review!  
 **becarefulcontentspriceless -** Thanks! Thanks for the review!  
 **serenitaruiz -** Hahaha! Thanks for the review!  
 **Guest -** Glad you liked it! Thanks for the review!  
 **AbsterStories -** Glad you enjoyed it. Exactly, jail isn't a good place for Emily to be in right now. Hahaha thanks! Thankfully you didn't have to wait for Saturday. Thanks for the review!  
 **102000QP -** Thanks for the review! Here's the next one.  
 **rmpcmfan -** Exactly, they didn't really have a choice. It must've taken a lot of self control though. Thanks for the review!  
 **Kensi1997 -** Hahaha I just wish she could have done more to Kim, but like I said to the others, jail isn't a good place for Emily to be in right now. Thanks for the review!

* * *

When Emily arrived at the hospital, she went straight to JJ's room.

"Hey Garcia." She said with a smile towards the bubbly blonde. She looked at the bed and saw that JJ was peacefully sleeping, holding Garcia's hand. She smiled at the peaceful look she had on her face, but that smile faded once she realized that it wouldn't last long. She knew that JJ was bound to have nightmares, she just hoped they would be put off for a while.

"Hi, gumdrop. Did everything go well?" Garcia asked, looking at Emily expectantly.

"Everything went fine, Pen. The local police took her to the station where she'll spend the night." Emily said with a small smile to Garcia.

"Good, now my little sunshine can finally be at peace knowing that that very evil witch won't hurt her again." Garcia said, vehemently.

They spent a moment in silence before Garcia spoke again, quieter this time.

"How did we let this happen? How did we not see it?" The tears evident in her eyes.

Emily looked at her and sighed sadly.

"I saw it and confronted her about it, but she wouldn't tell me what was going on. She was too afraid." Emily said, shaking her head. "I should've pushed harder." She added, frustrated with herself.

"You could have possibly lost her friendship if you did." Garcia reasoned.

"Well, it would be better than this, wouldn't it?" Emily asked, sighing again and sitting on the edge of the bed, watching JJ sleep.

Garcia didn't say anything, she just sat silently until she decided to leave.

"I better get going, I'll leave you two alone. I'll talk to you later." Garcia said as she got up.

"I'll see you later, Garcia." Emily said with a smile.

"Bye, Emster!" She said, grinning back. She gave Emily a hug before leaving the room.

The doctor entered a few moments later, intending to usher all visitors home for the night, but after a short argument with a stubborn agent, he had relented. There was no way Emily was going to leave her friend's side.

Around 1 AM, JJ woke up. Emily was surprised she hadn't had a nightmare. 'Maybe she's just in shock or too exhausted to even have one.' Emily thought to herself.

She watched as JJ's blue eyes opened and turned toward Emily, confusion passing through them, before JJ remembered where she was and why."Em?" She asked, quietly, rubbing her eyes in exhaustion.

"Hey, Jayje." Emily whispered with a small smile.

She looked straight at JJ as she grabbed her hand, running her thumbs over her knuckles, gently.

"We got her." Was all Emily said.

They held eye contact as JJ's eyes started watering.

Emily pulled her in and held her close to her chest, feeling JJ's sobs against her shoulder.

"She's going to kill me, Em. She's going to kill me." She repeated over and over.

"No she won't. I won't let her hurt you ever again. It's okay, now. I promise. She's never going to hurt you again. Ever." Emily whispered into JJ's ear as she comforted her.

JJ pulled back and wiped away her tears.

"You don't know her. She'll do everything she can-" JJ was cut off by Emily's soft voice.

"Jayje. Jen, breathe. Look at me, honey." Emily said and waited until JJ obeyed. "She's. going. to. jail." She said punctuating every word, making sure that JJ understood. "She will never lay a single finger on you ever again, JJ. I promise you that as long as I'm around, she won't hurt you anymore. I mean it." Emily vowed and everyone that knew her knew that Emily never made a promise that she didn't intend to keep.

JJ looked at her lap and nodded, fidgeting with the blanket.

"This wasn't the first time she hurt me." JJ admitted, quietly.

"What?" Emily asked, wide-eyed.

"She's been hitting me for a while." She said in a whisper.

"Jayje, why didn't you tell me?" Emily asked, as she took JJ's hand.

"I was too scared. She told me she'd do worse if I told anyone. She told me that she'd kill me and then go after you. I didn't want her to hurt you." JJ said, quietly.

Emily couldn't believe it. She couldn't believe she hadn't seen it. She should've helped JJ, she should've stopped Kim. Guilt was running through her veins as she thought about how she could've gotten JJ out of the situation if she had just pushed harder.

"She wouldn't have done any of that, Jayje. They were empty threats." Emily explained.

"I deserved it, you know? It was my fault." JJ said, quietly and Emily, being the profiler she is, knew that JJ really believed that. She really believed with all her might that she was to blame for Kim's abuse.

"Don't say that, Jen. It's not true." Emily said, shaking her head as she denied what JJ was saying. It was breaking her heart the way JJ blamed herself.

"Yes, it is, Em." JJ said as a tear fell from the corner of her eye.

"No. That's what she told you. What she told you and the truth are two different things, Jayje. She told you a lot of things that aren't true." Emily said as she remembered what Kim had said to her.

JJ just stayed quiet, playing with the hospital blanket.

"Jen, the way she treated you...that's not how you treat someone you love." Emily said. She needed JJ to know the difference between love and violence.

JJ looked away as another tear fell, making a wet track on her face.

Emily reached out carefully and wiped it away with her thumb.

"It's not. Tell me you understand that." Emily said as she caressed JJ's cheek with her thumb, lightly.

JJ nodded letting a few more tears fall. She was trying hard not to break, but all the things that Kim had told her had left their mark on her.

"One day you'll believe that." Emily whispered.

She loved Emily, but she wasn't ready for another relationship yet.

They spent a few minutes in silence before JJ spoke again.

"She was very jealous all the time. One day she followed me because she was convinced that I was cheating. She saw me pick you up the day your car broke down and got mad. I told her there was nothing going on, but she didn't believe me. She told me that I was worthless, that I wasn't useful for anything except for-except for-" JJ couldn't finish as sobs wracked her body.

Emily held her tight.

"That's not true." Emily said, knowing what Kim had said. She couldn't believe that Kim had made JJ believe that.

JJ just stayed silent.

"What she showed you wasn't love. Love shouldn't hurt. Love _doesn't_ hurt. Abuse does. Abuse and control and that's what she was doing to you. Love is a whole different thing." Emily said as she leaned forward, kissing JJ's forehead, letting her lips linger, before pulling back.

She loved JJ more than anything, but she knew that JJ wasn't ready for another relationship yet. She needed time to heal first and Emily would be there as a friend to help her through it.

"If I didn't deserve it, then why did she do it?" JJ asked innocently and it tore Emily's heart right out of her chest.

"There are just some people that have this need to hurt others, it's not your fault, she's just wired that way." Emily said.

JJ nodded, accepting Emily's answer. Just maybe, one day, she could learn to trust again.

 **A/N:** **If you keep up with all the reviews, there will be another chapter on Monday! :D Reviews = Chapter on Monday ;) R &R people :)**


	13. Not Everyone Is Like Kim

**becarefulcontentspriceless -** Thanks for the review! I'm so glad you continue to enjoy and review this story! :)  
 **AbsterStories -** I'm going to explain what will happen to Kim in an A/N at the end of this chapter. I love Jemily moments a lot too, that's why I write a lot of them haha Thanks for the review!  
 **Kensi1997 -** Aww! I'm sorry I made you cry! I'm glad you liked it though! Thanks for the review!  
 **Guest -** Yeah, that's the point of the story, to show that Emily cares about her a lot. Thanks for the review!  
 **elphiemolizbethbau -** Thanks for the review! Here's the next chapter!  
 **helly1bradleywyatt -** Thank you for your continued support! I try my best to manage those things. Sometimes they don't come out as well as I wanted them to, but I try my best. Thanks for the review!  
 **MochaGirl14 -** Thanks for the review! Here's and update and I hope you continue to review!  
 **jodeebug -** Hahaha! Thanks for the review! Here's the next chapter and I hope you continue to review. Pretty please! Hahah lol  
 **unbreakable86 -** Thanks for the review! Here's another chapter and I hope you continue to review! Thanks!  
 **starie78 -** This story won't have too much of the team in it. It's mostly about JJ and Emily, and even though I don't want to rush their relationship too much, I'll have to get them together at some point. Thanks for the review and I hope you continue to do so!  
 **Crdr -** Like I said to the other review, I won't rush it too much, but I have to get them together at some point. Thanks for the review!

* * *

"Hey, why don't you try to get some sleep? You're getting discharged in the morning, right?" Emily asked.

JJ nodded to Emily's last question.

"Well, it'll pass by faster if you sleep for a little while." Emily said with a smile.

"I don't want to sleep." JJ whispered, brokenly.

"Why?" Emily asked although she knew why. JJ was afraid of having a nightmare. The only reason she fell asleep with Penelope by her side was because she was exhausted.

JJ shrugged, avoiding her friend's eyes.

Emily got up, making JJ look at her, quickly. She laid down next to JJ, putting her arms around the blonde in a protective way and letting the smaller woman lay her head on Emily's chest. Emily kissed the top of JJ's head, feeling her friend relax once realizing what was happening.

"I'll be right here if you have a nightmare. I promise I'll wake you up. You're safe now, anjinho." Emily said as she gave JJ a reassuring squeeze.

"Was that Spanish?" JJ asked as she bent her neck backward to look up at Emily.

Emily shook her head with a smile as she looked down at JJ. "It's Portuguese. It means 'angel'."

JJ just looked at Emily with a smile before laying her head back down to rest on her friend's chest.

"Goodnight, Em." JJ said with a content sigh. She hadn't felt so safe in a long time.

"Goodnight, angel." Emily said as JJ started drifting off to sleep.

Emily just watched her sleep. She wasn't tired and she couldn't sleep with the things running through her mind.

She wanted to know why there was blood on the sheets. She wanted to know exactly what had happened to JJ, but she wasn't going to make her tell her, she had been through enough of that already at the hands of Kim.

It sickened her how someone could mistreat any human being, let alone JJ. JJ was the sweetest person she knew. She was the person who could brighten up anybody's day. And when she smiled, God, that smile just made Emily melt. She loved to see JJ smile. She loved to hear her laugh. She didn't like to hear her cry or see her hurt. She hated to see JJ talk about herself with such deprecation. She hated it. She promised to bring JJ's confidence back. She vowed to erase Kim completely out of JJ's mind. From now on, JJ would only know love. No more pain.

She was brought out of her thoughts a few hours later by JJ moving in her arms. That's when Emily realized she was shaking.

"Stop! Kim, please don't do this!" JJ cried as she tried fighting off an invisible attacker.

"JJ. Jen. Wake up, it's Emily. You're okay. Kim's not here. Come on, angel. Wake up." Emily said as she tried to bring JJ out of her nightmare.

"No! You're hurting me! Please, I'm begging you, don't do this! Please Kim!" JJ continued to plead in her sleep as Emily tried waking her up.

"Come on, angel face. Wake up." Emily said, trying to wake her up, but JJ's body just continued shaking as tears slipped out of closed eyelids.

"No! Please! I don't want to do this! Please! Please stop! NO!" JJ screamed as she sat up, breathing heavily and violently shaking.

"You're okay. You're okay." Emily soothed as she rubbed her hand up and down JJ's arm.

"She was...She was..." JJ didn't continue. She just sobbed.

Emily pulled her close. "It's okay. It was just a dream. She's never going to hurt you again." She said, rubbing small comforting circles on JJ's back.

"I-I'm sorry." JJ apologized.

"You have nothing to be sorry for. It's not your fault." Emily said, sincerely.

JJ cried until she thought there were no possible tears left.

"I don't want to sleep anymore. Please, Em. Don't make me sleep." JJ begged.

"I won't ever make you do anything you don't want to do. Ever, okay?" Emily asked.

JJ nodded and they laid back down, JJ's head once again on Emily's chest.

"Want to talk about it?" Emily asked as she ran her fingers through JJ's long hair.

"I'm so scared she's going to hurt me again." JJ admitted.

"She's not. She's in jail, and even if she was out, I wouldn't let her hurt you. I promise. I'd kill her before she even got 50 feet near you." Emily promised.

Despite the situation, JJ smiled through small sniffles.

JJ put her arms around Emily's middle, making Emily put hers around her in a protective and loving way.

"Em, remember when we were at that restaurant having lunch? The day she walked in?" JJ asked after about a minute of silence.

"I do. What about it?" Emily asked.

"I was so used to her ordering for me that I thought you were going to do the same thing. She didn't even let me pick what I wanted to eat. She was always the one who told me what to eat, what to do. Taking control back is going to take some getting used to, but I know not everyone is like her." JJ admitted.

Emily let out a sigh at that.

"I know it's kind of hard to believe just words, but just listen, okay? Not everyone is like her. Not everyone likes to control their partners. Protect, yes, I believe everybody wants to protect their loved one, but there's a fine line between protectiveness and control. Those are two very different things. You have the right to choose what you want to eat and nobody has the right to choose for you. Not everyone wants to hurt you." Emily said and she felt JJ's arms tighten around her.

In return she tightened hers on JJ in a protective way.

"Not everyone is like Kim." Emily whispered as she felt JJ's hot tears.

 **A/N: I won't be making a trial for Kim, but she will be mentioned in the story. I still have to think about what I'm going to do with her and how. For now, I'll just work on the Jemily part :) Thanks to all of you for reviewing!**


	14. Lucky

**jodeebug -** Well, stick around and you'll see where the story goes ;) Thanks for the review!  
 **AbsterStories -** Well, thanks to you now I know exactly where to go with Kim hahaha! Stick around for more ;) Thanks for the review!  
 **HopeLoveLife -** Here's the next chapter. Thanks for the review!  
 **Kensi1997 -** Aww! Well, I hope you feel better. Here's the next chapter :) Thanks for the review!  
 **102000QP -** Yeah, it's just so sweet :) Thanks for the review!  
 **serenitaruiz -** Haha yeah, here's the next update! Thanks for the review!  
 **elphiemolizbethbau -** Hahaha lol Here's the next chapter anjinho :P hahaha Thanks for the review!  
 **becarefulcontentspriceless -** Hahahaha yeah lol, it's just so cute the way the two interact. Thanks for the review and here's the next chapter! :)  
 **Guest -** Hahaha well, here's the next chapter! I can't wait for your next review ;) hahaha Thanks for the review!  
 **Crdr -** Yeah, every once in a while I give one or two extra chapters a week, so you might want to keep an eye out for that :) Thanks for the review!  
 **Thalie57 -** I love to write Emily like this, it's just so sweet the way the two interact. Here's the next chapter. Thanks for the review!

* * *

They spent the rest of the night/early morning just talking about nothing in particular.

Finally, it was time for JJ to be discharged.

The doctor came in.

"How are you feeling, today?" The doctor asked with a sympathetic smile.

"Better." JJ mumbled. Emily still hadn't moved from her spot on the bed, but they sat up straighter than they had during the night.

"Okay. Well, you can go home." The doctor said, the smile still on her face.

"Really?" JJ asked, her face lighting up at the idea of finally being able to go home.

"Yes. I'll get someone to bring the discharge papers. I would suggest you talk to someone. It's better to talk about it than keep it inside." The doctor said.

JJ nodded but had no intention in doing so.

"I don't want to see you back here again." The doctor said, with a playful smile.

JJ smiled a little.

"Thank you, doctor." JJ said.

"You're welcome." The doctor said, before leaving.

"Jayje, do you want to go back to your apartment? If you don't want to go back there, you could spend the night at mine. I have a spare bedroom, or you could stay with Garcia if you feel more comfortable with her." Emily said. She was afraid that if JJ went back to her apartment that she'd have a flashback or something.

"Are...are you sure?" JJ asked, looking at Emily.

"About which part? Staying with me or staying with Garcia?" Emily asked with a chuckle.

"With Pen. It's not that I don't want to stay with you, it's just that..." JJ started to explain, barely above a whisper, but left the statement hanging in the air.

"Of course I'm sure. You don't have to explain yourself, okay? I understand and it's completely fine." Emily said, with a smile. She saw this coming. She knew that JJ was too scared to stay with her and she didn't mind. Her heart sank slightly, though, thinking of what Kim had done to cause JJ fear. She just wanted JJ to feel comfortable and she knew that Garcia could do that.

"Okay, then. I guess if you don't mind, I'll stay with her, if it's okay with her too." JJ said. She was relieved to see that Emily wasn't mad at her for choosing to stay with Garcia, but right now, she was too scared to stay with Emily. What if she did something to make Emily mad or repulsed? She didn't want to risk it.

"Okay. And I don't mind at all, Jayje. I just want you to be comfortable, okay?" Emily said, rubbing JJ's knuckles with her thumb.

For now, JJ just wanted to get out of there, so she just nodded.

Meanwhile, a nurse knocked before coming in with a bright smile.

"Hi, agent Jareau, I'm Mackenzie. Could you just sign here, please?" The nurse asked, the discharge papers in her hand.

JJ nodded and the nurse gave her the papers to sign.

She signed them and thanked the nurse, before leaving with Emily. She was already changed and more than ready to leave the hospital.

"Hey, Em?" JJ asked as they walked to the hospital's parking lot.

"Yeah, Jen?" Emily asked as she glanced at JJ.

"I think I'm going to call Pen and ask her if I can stay with her. Just to make sure it's okay." JJ said, quietly.

"There's no need. She already knows." Emily said as she smiled back at JJ.

JJ looked at her confused. "How does she know? We didn't even call her." JJ said, confusion evident in her eyes and words.

Emily gave her a sad smile. Truth was Garcia and Emily knew from the beginning that JJ would prefer to stay with Garcia.

"Oh." Was all that JJ said. "I'm sorry." She added after a few minutes of silence.

"Jayje, don't apologize. I told you it was okay. I'm not angry or hurt that you don't want to stay with me. I understand, I promise. Right now, I want you to be where you're most comfortable. Garcia and I knew from the start that it was her you'd be staying with and that's okay. That's fine. I promise." Emily said as she put her arm around JJ's shoulders, feeling her tense before relaxing.

She was wondering if JJ wanted to go to her house to pick up a few things, but she didn't want to bring that up. Thankfully, JJ did so herself.

"Em, can we stop at my place to grab a few things first, please?" She asked.

"Yeah. You could make a list and I'll get them for you if you don't want to go in there." Emily suggested.

"No, it's okay, I'll go." JJ said, taking a deep breath.

"Okay, if you're sure, but I'm going in with you, okay?" Emily said. She didn't want to sound bossy, but she wasn't about to let JJ go in there alone. She could have a flashback, or a panic attack and outside, Emily would have no idea if that was happening or not, so there was no way she was staying behind.

JJ nodded, gratefully. To be honest, she didn't want to go in alone. She didn't want to remember Kim pushing her up against the wall, kicking and punching her or worse...she didn't want to remember Kim forcing herself on her. She thanked her lucky stars that Emily was there to help her. She thanked God that she wasn't alone in her recovery because she didn't know if she would be able to handle it. Had Emily not been with her from the start, she would have probably done what her sister did many years ago.

"Hey, what are you thinking about?" Emily asked as they reached the car. She opened JJ's door and waited for her to get in before going to the driver's side and getting in herself.

"Just how lucky I am to have you by my side." JJ said with a smile as she looked at Emily.

"I'm the lucky one, Jayje. I have been so lucky to have someone as amazing as you by my side since I started at the BAU. I have never met anyone as special as you. You are one of a kind, Jennifer Jareau." Emily said with a smile, kissing JJ's cheek, before pulling back and looking into smiling blue eyes.

They were both lucky to have each other.


	15. JJ's House

**HopeLoveLife -** I have already most of it written so I can't make them longer. Hahah as for more updates, I give them when I can :) Thanks for the review!  
 **elphiemolizbethbau -** Hahahah. Thanks for the review!  
 **AbsterStories -** Yeah, I think it makes it more realistic, her staying with Penelope. You'll see. Yeah, still writing that haha. Thanks for the review!  
 **102000QP -** Yeah, it is, but maybe Em can make it better ;) Thanks for the review!  
 **jodeebug -** Thanks for another great review! Hahaha A little bossy, aren't we? lol hahaha Here's the next chapter :P  
 **Kensi1997 -** Aww thanks! I'm sorry I made you cry (again)! And another review by an amazing reviewer! Thanks for the review!  
 **Crdr -** Hahaha lol! All in it's time, my friend. All in it's time :P hahah Thanks for the review!  
 **Guest -** Thanks for the review! Hahah here's the next chapter!  
 **Thalie57 -** Hahahah well, here's the next chapter. I had to put JJ with Penelope because it gave it a more realistic touch to it. Thanks for the review!  
 **apollovriend -** Thanks! I try my best! Thanks for the review!

* * *

They had been driving for 20 minutes and were nearing JJ's house.

They had made small talk most of the road, but as they neared their destination, JJ grew quieter and quieter.

"JJ, honey, are you sure you want to go in there?" Emily asked as she pulled in the driveway.

"I have to. I need to do this for me. I need to get some of my control back, Em. I lost all of it in there, so I'm going to find it in the exact same place where I gave it up." JJ said, confidently.

Emily looked proudly at JJ with a smile.

"You're one strong woman." She said, grabbing JJ's hand and giving it a gentle squeeze before getting out of the car. She walked to the other side of the vehicle, opening JJ's door and helping her climb out before they headed to the house's front door.

JJ took the key she had out of her pocket as she approached the door. Emily noticed how her hands trembled as she tried to get the key in the lock. JJ closed her eyes and took a deep breath before turning the key and opening the door, feeling Emily's hand on her shoulder in a gesture of support.

"Just remember, there's nobody else here but you and me and I will never hurt you, okay?" Emily whispered softly, making her feel safe instantly before she took a step into the house. Her house. The house that held a whole lot of bad memories. The house that made her sick to even think about what happened in there. But she had to do this. For herself.

She felt Emily's hand in hers as she started walking through the house. CSU didn't make a lot of mess. The house was okay considering that they had to take a few things and check for fingerprints and find other kinds of evidence.

JJ stopped when she entered the living room. She looked at the place where she had taken previous beatings and where Kim had pushed her up against the wall, gripping her neck. The place where she had been slapped so hard that she fell to her knees in front of Kim. The place that had decided her fate the previous night. It was all too fresh in her mind and it was becoming overwhelming. The tears came to her eyes, but she didn't let them fall. She had to get her things so she could get out of there as soon as possible.

Emily watched JJ carefully. She saw the emotions play on the blonde's face. She saw the tears gathered in her eyes and she saw her trying her hardest to not let them fall. She saw the most beautiful person that had ever crossed her life trying hard not to fall apart. She put an arm around JJ's shoulders and JJ seemed to snap out of it.

"I need to get my stuff from the bedroom so we can get out of here." JJ said in a tone just above a whisper as she tried to keep her voice steady.

Emily noticed how JJ didn't say 'my bedroom;' she said 'the bedroom', making her believe that JJ no longer related her bedroom with herself. There's no telling for how long JJ has felt this way, feeling like her house, the place where she was supposed to feel safe, was just like a haunted house, a place she feared.

They walked together to the bedroom. Emily still had her arm wrapped around JJ's shoulders. When they reached the door, JJ reached for the knob. She left her hand there for what felt like hours but was only just a minute. Finally, she turned the knob but still didn't open the door. She dreaded going into the room that now gave her nightmares. The beatings she could handle, but what happened in the bedroom was something that killed her inside. It was something that left her feeling like she wasn't worth anything. It had affected her more than the beatings and Kim's words had all together. It had made her feel powerless, more powerless than she had ever felt in her life.

"Hey, you don't have to go in there." Emily said, softly.

"Yes I do." Was all JJ said before slowly opening the door and stepping inside the bedroom.

The first thing she noticed was the blood stains on the mattress. It had passed through the sheets. She immediately started breathing hard as she tried fighting the memories that came to her mind.

"Shit!" Emily cursed as she noticed what JJ was looking at. She thought CSU had taken the mattress with them.

JJ felt tears roll down her face as she started having flashbacks.

 _'You don't know how long I've waited for you to service me like this.' Kim said as she jumped on the bed._

"No, no, no, no, no!" JJ cried as she tried to shake the memory from her head. She didn't want to remember.

"JJ, look at me sweetheart. Look at me. Focus on me." Emily said as she stood in front of JJ.

JJ tried focusing on Emily, but she couldn't. The memories were too strong.

 _'Nuh-uh-uh. You're lucky I even want to touch you at all! You're so disgusting that nobody but me wants to touch you!'_

"No! Stop!" JJ cried as she shook her head fiercely.

"Jayje! Come on, angel! Look at me! Take deep breaths, honey, come on." Emily said as she tried to get JJ out of her flashback.

"Please! No! I don't want this! I don't want it! Stop!" JJ screamed as she was now backed up against a wall, her breathing erratic, with Emily in front of her, trying to get her to calm down.

 _'Oh God baby, I'm so close, you're a good girl. Good girl.' She said as she pleasured herself while pounding faster and faster until finally, she stopped._

JJ collapsed on the ground, sobbing, with her face in her hands as her body trembled.

"I didn't want it, Em. I didn't want it. I swear!" JJ repeated, her cries breaking Emily's heart.

"I know, Jay, I know. Look at me, honey, please, just look at me." Emily pleaded as she realized that JJ was coming back to reality.

JJ slowly lifted her head from her hands and looked right at Emily. Her teary eyes meeting the concerned ones of her best friend.

"I'm sorry." Was all JJ said as tears rolled down her already tear stained cheeks. She looked so broken that Emily felt like someone had taken a hammer and was smashing her heart over and over again, mercilessly. Seeing JJ like this was killing her inside. She hated what Kim had done to JJ. She hated not knowing what the hell had happened for sure, she could only speculate. She hated Kim for ever making JJ feel the way she felt. She wanted to kill Kim, that's exactly what she wanted to do, no doubt about it.

"Listen to me, angel. You have absolutely nothing to be sorry about. If I had known that the bedroom was...in this state, we wouldn't even have come in here. What happened here in this house is in the past. I know you're struggling with what happened and that's normal, but you don't need to go through it alone. I'm right here and I will be here forever. I promise. Nothing like what happened here will ever happen again, okay?" Emily spoke softly, her eyes never leaving JJ's.

JJ nodded and went to wipe her tears, but Emily stopped her by putting a hand on top of both of JJ's. She then proceeded to wipe JJ's tears with her own thumb, gently, letting her hand linger on JJ's cheek.

"You're safe now. I promise." Emily whispered to JJ as she leaned forward, kissing JJ's forehead.

 _'Safe.'_ JJ thought to herself. That was a feeling she hadn't felt in a very long time. She closed her eyes, feeling Emily's lips softly press against her forehead. She just wanted to feel safe again. That's all she wanted.


	16. Garcia's House

**elphiemolizbethbau -** Thanks hahah lol Thanks for the review!  
 **rmpcmfan -** We'll see :) Thanks for the review!  
 **jodeebug -** Hahahaha lol. Yes ma'am! :P Thanks for the review!  
 **Crdr -** Hahaha true! I had that issue too when I started reading FF stories of her and JJ, but now I'm used to it lol :P Thanks for the review!  
 **Thalie57 -** Yes she will :) Thanks for the review!  
 **Guest -** Thanks for the review!  
 **Kensi1997 -** Hahahaha! Lol! Glad you liked it :P  
 **T-Rex Ninja Kid -** Thank you for reviewing every chapter that you weren't caught up on. You're awesome! Thanks for the reviews!  
 **102000QP -** Thanks! Thanks for the review!  
 **AbsterStories -** Hahah it's okay :P We'll see how Emily reacts to everything later on :) Thanks for the review!

* * *

Once they had all that JJ needed, they left for the car, Emily's hand never leaving JJ's.

They drove to Garcia's house in a comfortable silence, both lost in thought.

JJ had her head back and her eyes closed thinking about how she should tell Emily what happened last night. She knew that Emily had a pretty good idea, but she knew the brunette woman too well. She knew that she wouldn't relax until she knew for sure what happened. JJ just needed to find out exactly how to tell her. Would Emily hate her? Would she be disgusted? Would she think that JJ deserved it? _Did_ she, in fact, deserve it? JJ continued to think about Emily and how she would react when she told her, because one thing was speculating, another was having it confirmed.

Emily on the other hand had her eyes on the road, but her mind was in a whole different place. She couldn't stop wondering what had happened last night. What if JJ had been forced to consent to sex, or straight out forced to have sex without her consent? Emily didn't know what to think anymore. She just didn't want to believe that something like that had happened to JJ. Maybe there was some other explanation for the blood on the sheets. Maybe they just had rough, _consensual_ sex, or maybe Kim had hit JJ while they were in bed and JJ bled on the sheets. Yeah, that was probably it, not that that was any better. Emily couldn't bear to think different, she just couldn't. She would kill Kim with her bare hands.

They finally got to Garcia's house.

"Jayje, we're here." Emily said softly, taking her seat belt off while looking at JJ, who still had her eyes closed before getting out of the car.

JJ slowly opened her eyes and forced herself to stop the thoughts that were running through her mind.

She unbuckled her seat belt and smiled a little as Emily opened her door.

Emily then went to the trunk to get JJ's stuff.

They walked up to Garcia's front door and didn't even have the chance to knock. The door flung open, frightening JJ as she took two steps back before being pulled into a tight embrace by Garcia, who didn't seem to notice how JJ's eyes had gone wide. JJ eventually hugged Garcia back once the panic had worn off.

"Jayje! How are you?" Garcia said, not letting go of JJ.

"I would be better if you let me breathe." JJ said with a chuckle.

"Oh, I'm sorry." Garcia said, pulling back and smiling before attacking Emily with one of her hugs.

Emily hugged her back before pulling away with a smile.

Garcia turned back to JJ.

"So, how are you doing?" Garcia asked her.

"I'm okay." JJ said with a smile, receiving a look from Garcia. "I'm fine, Pen. Really!" She said with another smile, this time more forced.

"Okay..." Garcia said, reluctantly. "Why don't you two come on in?" She suggested, leading the way into her house.

The two other women followed her in, sitting on the couch after Emily had put JJ's stuff on the floor where no one would trip on it.

"Do you girls want anything to drink?" Garcia asked.

"No, thanks, Pen." JJ said with a small smile.

Emily smiled at Garcia. "Thanks, Garcia, but I have to get going." She said.

"Already? But you just got here. Why don't you spend the night?" Garcia asked.

"Thanks, but I'm going to head to my own house and let you two catch up. I'll see you later, okay?" Emily said as she got up to leave.

"Are you sure?" Garcia asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure. Have fun though and don't stay up too late." She said with a small laugh and a wink, making the other two chuckle.

"Alright, we'll see you later, then." Garcia said.

Emily hugged her before turning to JJ who was standing too, kissing her forehead and giving her a hug.

"If you need anything, call me, okay?" Emily said, near JJ's ear.

She felt JJ nod against her shoulder before letting go.

"Alright, I'll call tomorrow. Bye!" Emily said as she opened the door.

"Bye!" Garcia and JJ said as they watched her pull out of the drive-way and leave.

" _We_ , have a lot to talk about, missy." Garcia said with a smile as she guided JJ back in and to the couch.

 **A/N: Sorry for the short chapter. Next one will be longer :)**


	17. Guilt and Realization

**starie78 -** Well, here's the next chapter :) Thanks for the review!  
 **becarefulcontentspriceless -** Hahaha Thanks for the review!  
 **helly1bradleywyatt -** Thank you. Here's the next one. Thanks for the review!  
 **elphiemolizbethbau -** Hahahha yes she is :P Thanks for the review!  
 **jodeebug -** Hahaha thanks! As for being bossy, believable is an understatement. You're as bossy as my ex hahahhah just kidding! You're worse! lol Thanks for the review!  
 **AbsterStories -** Exactly. We'll see how it goes :P Here's the next chapter. Thanks for the review!  
 **serenitaruiz -** Thanks! Emily's just trying to make excuses because she doesn't want to believe that something like that would happen to JJ. Thanks for the review!  
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 **kpop1392as -** Thanks and I hope you continue to review this story if you can :P Thanks for the review!  
 **Thalie57 -** Yeah, I thought it best if JJ had a little time to herself without feeling constantly under stress. Thanks for the review!  
 **Boda2007 -** Well, you'll have to stick around to see that :P I hope you continue to review, I love reviews! Hahaha :P Thanks for the review!

* * *

On the way home, Emily stopped at the beach. She sighed as she felt the sand sift beneath her toes. She sat down, looking at the waves and enjoying the calmness they brought with them. The soft wind soothed her, relaxing her mind after the last few days of tension. She focused on the aroma of the ocean and breathed a sigh of contentment. She enjoyed going to the beach for this very reason, it calmed her. It made her feel more at ease.

That is, until she thought about JJ and began searching for what she could have done to prevent all of this.

The guilt started building up until it finally consumed her. She put her head in her hands, closing her eyes, and trying hard not to cry. Not that she had to worry about appearances, since there was nobody on the beach, but she didn't want to cry, regardless. She hated to cry, so she looked up at the sky, blinking back the tears before returning her gaze to the ocean.

'How can I possibly continue my job as a profiler if I couldn't even see that the woman I love was being abused? How could I not see that it was physical too, not just Kim being a controlling bitch? How could I not see it?' Emily berated herself as she felt the tears build up again.

Once again, she looked up, closing her eyes against the emotions.

She took a deep breath, trying to reorganize her thoughts.

'How could I not have seen this?'

That was the question that ran the most through Emily's head, lately.

She wondered how in the world she could catch a serial killer but not see that the beautiful blonde, whom she worked with every day, was hurting. How her friend had been in pain all this time and she hadn't even noticed anything. How could she or better yet, how could Hotch and the BAU consider her, along with her colleagues, one of the best profilers in the world if she couldn't figure out that Kim was, in fact, hurting JJ.

She had realized that Kim was controlling, she knew that and still she decided to back off and let JJ deal with it, as requested by JJ herself. She should've pushed, she should've made JJ realize that she was in a bad relationship. She should've helped her get out of there. Emily should have known that JJ was being hurt. She should've known.

She got up angrily and kicked the sand before walking back to her car.

She turned on the engine and continued her drive home. When she got there, she opened her front door, turned on the TV and just sat down on the couch, feeling Sergio climb onto her lap.

She petted him as she watched TV. She wasn't even paying attention to whatever was on, so she just turned it off and laid down on the couch with Sergio on top of her stomach. She closed her eyes and let herself fall into a restless sleep.

Emily was currently at her desk, doing some paperwork. It had been almost two weeks with barely knowing how JJ was doing. JJ had taken two weeks off work to recover from what happened. Well, more like Hotch had forced her to stay home. Emily smiled to herself as Garcia ranted to her that JJ just wouldn't stop complaining about how she wanted to go back to work.

She had talked to JJ on the phone almost every day, but was still hesitant to go over to Garcia's house to see her. She didn't want JJ to be any more scared of her than she already was. She had to admit though, she did have a similar build to Kim. JJ probably felt intimidated by people who had the same height and structure as her ex. That would explain why she was so scared of Emily, but not of Garcia.

She made a split decision to go see JJ. She just had to see, with her own eyes, how JJ was really doing. She got up and headed to Garcia's 'lair'.

"Hey, Garcia." Emily said as she entered the office.

"Hi, gumdrop. JJ just called me. She wants to change apartments. She asked me to come with her to check some out and she also told me to ask you if you wanted to help out too." Garcia said as she turned her chair to face Emily.

"Well, that's not surprising." Emily muttered. "Yeah, I'll come along." She said with a smile.

"Is there anything specific you needed?" Garcia asked.

"I was thinking about taking a drive to your house to see how JJ is doing. Is that alright with you?" Emily asked.

"Of course it is! You don't have to ask; just come by any time you want. JJ is dying to see you. She's been talking nonstop about you since day one." Garcia said with a huge smile on her face.

"Really?" Emily asked with a smile and a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah. It's always Emily this and Emily that. I swear she's in love with you." Garcia said, not kidding at the end of her sentence.

"She needs to heal and recover from what Kim's done to her." Emily said matter-of-factly.

"Yes, and I don't think she'll be able to do that without you." Garcia said.

"I'm right here to help her." Emily said.

"You know that's not what I meant." Garcia said, fixing Emily with a look.

"Garcia, she's not ready for another relationship." Emily argued.

"How do you know? Are you her? Are you the person who's been listening to her cry out for you in her sleep? Are you the person who's seen the way her eyes light up when I speak of you? Or the person who listens to her talk about you, saying that she loves you, but she knows that she's not worthy of your love?" Garcia paused as she watched the information sink in with Emily. "She needs you, Em. She needs someone who will make her understand that love doesn't hurt." She concluded, emotionally.

"She cries out for me in her sleep?" Emily whispered.

"Yeah. Sometimes-" Garcia stopped herself. She didn't know if she should tell Emily or if it would just make Emily feel bad.

"What, Garcia? Tell me." Emily insisted.

"Sometimes she...calls out to you and then wakes up crying because you weren't there. Once she dreamed that Kim shot you, but mostly she calls out to you and begs you to make Kim stop. It's heartbreaking. She needs you, Emily." Garcia said, tears in her eyes.

Emily got up from where she was perched on Garcia's desk.

"I'll stop by later today." Emily said as she squeezed Garcia's shoulder before walking out.


	18. Worry

**jodeebug -** Hahahaha! Thank you for reviewing! Well, internet in the woods...what's better than that? Hahaha!  
 **elphiemolizbethbau -** We'll see how it all goes. Thanks for the review!  
 **HopeLoveLife -** I like your user name lol :P I'm skipping in time. I want this story to focus on Emily and JJ. There will be some leaps of time through the story. Thanks for the review!  
 **Guest -** Hahaah! I will :P Thanks for the review!  
 **Crdr -** We'll see what I can do lol :P Here's the next chapter. Thanks for the review!  
 **T-Rex Ninja Kid -** We'll see if they will or if Emily will keep it to herself. Thanks for the review!  
 **rmpcmfan -** Exactly. Thanks! Thanks for the review!  
 **Thalie57 -** Thanks! Yeah, I think Emily's feeling should be acknowledged too. Thanks for the review!  
 **kpop1392as -** Thanks you! We'll see where I take it ;) Thanks for the review!  
 **starie78 -** Thank you! Here's the next chapter! Thanks for the review!  
 **AbsterStories -** Well, there's a little Jemily in this one, so I hope you enjoy :) Thanks for the review!

* * *

When it was finally time for Emily to go home, she gathered her things and walked over to the elevator. She was about to get in when she heard Garcia call out her name. She turned towards her friend.

"Hey Garcia, what's up?" She asked with a smile.

"Hey, I just wanted to warn you that she's not feeling very well today. She had a huge nightmare yesterday and wouldn't talk to me about it. I asked her what it was about but she wouldn't tell me." Garcia explained.

"Okay, thanks for the heads up." Emily said as a sad look crossed her eyes.

"I'm also going to be late today, I'm going to the bar with my sexy, chocolate, thunder God, so why don't you two have a nice long talk, maybe invite her to a date tomorrow or something, now that we have the weekend off?" Garcia said suggestively, with a hopeful smile on her face.

Emily chuckled and shook her head at Garcia's antics.

"As for the talk, yes, I'm going to talk to her, as for the date, I don't know. We'll see." Emily said with a smile.

"Okay, fair enough my little fluffy bug." Garcia said, causing Emily's eyebrows to suddenly shoot up.

"Fluffy bug? Really, Garcia?" Emily asked, her eyebrows still raised.

Garcia shrugged with a smile. "Have fun and hopefully, you two will be lovebirds soon." Garcia said.

"Whoa, let's just take it one step at a time. Not that the idea isn't appealing, it's just that she's already been through a lot and I don't want her to feel rushed or anything. I don't want her to feel pressured into a relationship while she's not ready." Emily explained.

"If it were anybody else, I wouldn't think she was ready either, but it's you, Em. She's in love with you. She has been for a long time." Garcia said.

"We'll see how everything goes and then what tonight leads to." Emily said.

"Ohh la la." Garcia said, suggestively.

"That's not what I meant!" Emily said. "Garcia, stop it!" She warned when Garcia wouldn't stop laughing. "You and Derek Morgan can't have a decent conversation without your perverted minds getting in the middle of it, can you?" She asked, rolling her eyes and getting in the elevator, hearing Garcia laugh and say goodbye.

She said goodbye back and clicked the button on the elevator, shaking her head.

* * *

After a few minutes of driving and a quick stop, Emily finally pulled up in Garcia's driveway.

She got out of the car and walked up the steps to knock on the door. She knocked twice and waited patiently for JJ to open the door.

When the door opened to reveal the beautiful blue-eyed woman, she couldn't help but stare in awe. JJ was dressed in a pair of shorts and a T-shirt, her hair in a ponytail.

"Hey, Em." JJ said, clearly trying to hide her excitement, but the tone of her voice giving it away.

Emily had to stop herself from replying with a 'hey, beautiful'.

Meh, she could say something similar. "Hey, wonderful, incredible, special human being." Emily said with a smile watching as JJ's eyes lit up before it disappeared as if she didn't believe she was anything that Emily said.

"I brought something for you." Emily said with a smile before handing JJ the bag that she had behind her back.

JJ opened it and saw two bags of Cheetos. She looked up at Emily with a smile on her face.

"Thanks, Em." JJ said, sincerely.

"Garcia told me you weren't feeling very good today, so I thought that maybe Cheetos would make you feel better." Emily said with a small, soft smile.

She watched as JJ's eyes changed from happy, to fear, to hurt and then to sadness all in one second.

Emily pulled her into a gentle hug. She felt JJ rest her head on her shoulder and letting out a very small sigh, but Emily heard it loud and clear.

"Are you okay?" Emily asked, not pulling back, just rubbing JJ's back softly with her hand.

"Yeah." JJ said, pulling back.

"Why don't we go sit on the couch? I want to know all about your one week and six days with Garcia." Emily suggested with a smile.

JJ smiled back and nodded, leading Emily to the couch.

When they sat down, side by side, they faced each other.

"So, anything new that I don't already know about?" Emily asked with a smile. Sure, she hadn't seen JJ in almost two weeks since she was busy at work, but she had talked to her on the phone and she had talked to Garcia too, so she knew most of what had been going on with the two.

JJ thought for a moment. "I'm thinking about changing apartments." JJ said.

"Yeah, Garcia told me about that. I think it's a great idea, Jayje." Emily said.

"Me too. I wondered if you would...like to...maybe come along...with us?" JJ asked, hesitantly.

"Of course I would. I'd love to come along and wonder which apartments people have died in and which ones might have ghosts." Emily said with a smile, making JJ chuckle.

JJ was about to say something when her phone rang. She answered the call in a professional voice.

"Agent Jareau." She said into the phone. "Okay." She paused as she listened to the voice. "No, I don't think I can do that." She said with a sigh, making Emily look worriedly at her. "Yes sir. I'll think about it and get back to you." She glanced at Emily looking into her concerned eyes, before averting her gaze. "I understand. Thank you, I'll get back to you later." JJ said and with that, she hung up the phone.

"Everything okay?" Emily asked.

"That was a detective from the local PD. They want me to give a statement." JJ said, in a low voice.

"Okay, when?" Emily asked.

"I told him I'd get back to him. I don't want to, Emily. I don't want to give my statement yet. I don't want to talk about it." JJ said as her eyes filled up with tears.

"Okay, okay, calm down. It's okay. I have someone that I think can help. I can pull a few strings and that way you have a little more time, okay?" Emily asked, pulling JJ into a hug.

"Are you sure? I don't want to be a bother." JJ said.

"Jayje, you're never a bother to me. I promise. This guy is good friends with my mother so I'm sure he will help. It's no problem. Really." Emily said and before JJ could say anything, the blonde's phone rang again.

"Agent Jareau." She answered, the same professionalism in her voice as before.

After a short conversation, she hung up and turned to Emily.

"That was Hotch saying that he tried to keep the detective from asking for my statement, but there was only so much he can do. The detective started insisting harder and Hotch couldn't hold him off any longer." JJ explained.

"Okay. That's okay. Let me just make a call, okay? I'll be right back." Emily said, getting up from the couch and already unlocking her phone as she made her way outside.

She explained the situation to her mother's friend and finally hung up after a while, thanking the man before returning to where JJ was.

"Alright, I just called him and he said he'd take care of it." Emily said with a smile as she sat back down next to JJ.

"Thanks, Em. I appreciate it." JJ said with a grateful smile.

"It's not a problem, but you know that at one point you're going to have to give your statement, right?" Emily asked as she looked at JJ.

"What if I don't want to?" JJ asked.

"I hate to say this, but if you don't give your statement, she might get away with it and be out of jail. It's your choice, Jayje, but do you really want her out there on the streets?" Emily asked.

"No, but having to tell..." JJ left the statement hanging in the air.

"I know, but you don't have to worry about it right now, okay? For now, my mother's friend will handle it." Emily said as she kissed the top of JJ's head, putting her arms around her.

"Okay." JJ said quietly as she leaned into Emily's embrace.


	19. Do You Want to Go On a Date?

**A/N: I want to apologize for the delay in updating, but I didn't have any internet, so yeah, sorry.**

 **elphiemolizbethbau -** Yeah, it does...but oh well. Here's the next chapter. Thanks for the review!  
 **AbsterStories -** Hahaha yes I do :P Yeah, I'm trying to make it as real as possible. When something like this happens, you don't rush things, it's important to take it slow. Hmm, Idk about JJ asking Emily out, JJ has no self esteem to do that. Early christmas' so far are not happening. We'll see when it'll happen again, but right now, it's just not possible, sorry.  
 **102000QP -** Thank you, I'm trying my best with them. Thanks for the review!  
 **kpop1392as -** Yes, wrapping them up in bubble wrap would be an awesome idea :P Garcia has always been awesome hahah Thanks for the review!  
 **Guest -** Hahahahaha! Lol! I know, right? I just though it was a good little detail to slip in there :P And what? A girl does need her comfort food! :P Thanks for the review!  
 **T-Rex Ninja Kid -** We'll see what happens :) Thanks for the review!  
 **rmpcmfan -** Yeah :) Thanks for the review!

* * *

After a few seconds of silence, Emily decided it was time to have a real conversation.

"Jayje, we need to talk." She said a little more seriously, but not too serious, making sure that JJ knew she wasn't mad or anything of the sort.

"Okay." JJ said, softly.

It was now or never.

"You might want to open one of those bags of Cheetos." Emily said with a small half-kidding, half-serious chuckle.

Now, realizing that Emily was serious, JJ realized she didn't know what it was about. Did she do something to make Emily mad? Did she do something wrong without realizing? She started to think back through the past two weeks to find out if she had done anything wrong.

"Did I-did I do something wrong?" JJ asked, stuttering a little.

"No, of course not, honey. It's nothing like that, I promise." Emily said, her heart breaking at the question.

"Then what is it that we need to talk about?" JJ asked, warily.

"Garcia and I talked today. She says you've been having nightmares." Emily said, gently.

JJ leaned back on the couch and Emily did the same, not taking her eyes off JJ.

JJ just shrugged without thinking before she swallowed hard. Maybe shrugging wasn't the right thing to do.

 _'Answer me, dammit!' Kim screamed, banging her hand on the table as she looked at JJ in anger._

JJ shook the flashback away and proceeded to open one of the bags of Cheetos that Emily had gotten.

She offered Emily some, wordlessly, still afraid of what her reaction would be to her shrugging and not giving her a straight answer, but instead of Emily's voice coming out angry and demanding, it came out soft and patient.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Emily asked as she watched JJ's eyes fill up with tears.

JJ wanted to say no, but she was afraid of what Emily might do.

"It's okay if you don't want to." Emily said softly, trying to prove that she wasn't attempting to force JJ to do anything she wasn't okay with.

"If you want to talk about it, I'm right here, but if you don't, that's okay too. It's your choice." Emily said as she reached out to take JJ's hand.

"They're not that bad." JJ whispered tearfully, brushing it off.

"That's not what Garcia says." Emily said, gently.

JJ remained quiet. Emily was starting to question if a relationship at this point was actually good for JJ. She wondered if it would do more damage than good, but then she remembered what Garcia had told her. Maybe she could actually help JJ understand what love is and help her distinguish it from pain and violence. Maybe a relationship filled with love would be good for JJ. She had never been in this position before of not knowing whether to pursue a relationship or not. She didn't really know what to do, to be honest.

"Okay, I can tell that you don't want to talk about it and that's okay, so I'll leave it alone, but if you want to talk, you know I'm here for you, okay?" Emily asked, rubbing her thumb over JJ's knuckles.

JJ nodded, looking up at Emily, studying her, as if checking for any sign of anger.

Emily locked eyes with her until she knew that JJ had found nothing.

JJ turned to the bag of Cheetos and took one out, eating it, before licking her fingers, unconsciously making Emily's throat run dry.

'Come on, Prentiss. Get a hold of yourself. If you want this to work, you're going to have to take things slow.' Emily reminded herself.

"Jayje, I need to ask you something else, but I want you to know that if you don't feel like you're ready, then tell me, okay? I don't want you to feel pressured into anything. If you really think you're not ready, then just say so, okay?" Emily asked, nervously.

"Okay." JJ said, clearly confused.

"Would you like to go out on a date with me?" Emily asked in one quick breath.

"What?" JJ asked, thinking that maybe she'd heard her wrong.

Emily was expecting this, so she repeated herself.

"Would you like to go on a date with me?"

"Me? You want _me_ to go on a date with _you_?" JJ asked, unbelievably.

"Yes." Emily said, patiently waiting for JJ to say yes or no.

"Why? Out of all the women you could have chosen why choose someone who doesn't deserve you?" JJ asked, confusion evident on her face.

"JJ, you are the most beautiful, amazing person I have ever met. You are special, JJ. You're strong and wonderful and just breathtaking. Don't doubt that. You're right, you don't deserve me, but that's because you deserve better. You deserve the best, but all I can offer is what I have and I have love, Jayje. I have real love, the kind that doesn't hurt, the kind that makes you feel like you're in heaven. I have that kind of love, and if you let me, I'll show you." Emily said in a voice, barely above a whisper.

JJ stared at her. "Okay, I'll go on a date with you, but you'll realize that it's a mistake. You deserve someone better than me, Em and I just know that soon, you're going to realize that." JJ said, sadly, her eyes filling up with tears once again. Even if it was just one date, she would be happy with that. Emily was the woman of her dreams.

"You're the best, Jayje. There's no better than you." Emily whispered as she kissed JJ's forehead, wrapping her arms around her.

JJ still didn't believe her, but didn't say anything.

"How about tomorrow?" Emily asked, pulling back from the embrace.

"Okay, what time?" JJ asked.

"Uhm, maybe 7? Is that good with you?" Emily asked.

"Yeah, that's perfect. Em, are you sure this is what you want?" JJ asked, tentatively. She didn't want to be Emily's mistake or regret.

"More sure than I have ever been about anything in my whole life." Emily said, locking eyes with JJ. "Is this what _you_ want? Are you ready for this?" She asked, wanting to make sure.

"Yeah. I'm ready for this." JJ said with a smile.

JJ wondered if there was some ulterior motive to Emily asking her out. Emily wouldn't use her and then leave like Kim said she would, would she? JJ didn't know if she could handle that. She would surely fall off the cliff she was already standing on. Was it worth the risk? Of course it was. She would take the risk. She needed love and security and only Emily could give her that, but at what cost? What did JJ have to do in return of getting that security and protection she craved? She knew deep inside that Emily wasn't that kind of person, but she couldn't help the doubts from creeping into her mind.

This could go both ways. Either Emily grabs her in time so she doesn't fall off the cliff, or she lets go of her hand and JJ falls. It was a risk that she would have to take.


	20. I Have a Date!

**A/N: Just a filler chapter before their date :)**

 **A/N #2: I am so sorry for the wait on these chapters, but I got some personal stuff going on so updates are going to be a little messed up, but I promise to get back to updating normally as soon as I can. I apologize for the delays.**

 **elphiemolizbethbau -** Here's the next chapter. So sorry for the long wait. Thanks for the review!  
 **serenitruiz -** Lets see what happens on the next chapter ;) Thanks for the review!  
 **Crdr -** Hahaha sorry for the long wait! Thanks for the review!  
 **Guest -** Exactly! We'll see how it goes. Thanks for the review!  
 **102000QP -** Thanks! Here's the next chapter. The one after this one will be better, I promise. Thanks for the review!  
 **jodeebug -** Hahahah lol! We'll see :P There won't be dancing yet on this date, but just as promised, there will be dancing on one of the future dates :) Thanks for the review!  
 **starie78 -** Thanks! Well, check it out :P Thanks for the review!  
 **T-Rex Ninja Kid -** Hahaha yeah :P I mean like finally! Huh? Hahaha Thanks for the review!  
 **Thalie57 -** Thanks! We'll see what happens in the near future chapters :P Thanks for the review!  
 **AbsterStories -** Yes, that is my intention. I want Emily to let JJ know that she's in control and there's no rush. Sorry, the date isn't on this chapter yet. It'll be on the next though! Thanks for the review!

* * *

After Emily had left, JJ sat on the couch, watching TV as she waited for Garcia to get home.

Emily had offered to stay with her until Garcia arrived, but JJ insisted that she'd be fine.

Emily eventually left, telling JJ to call her if she needed anything before kissing the blonde's forehead and leaving.

JJ started thinking about their date. Why would Emily ask her out? _Her_ out of all people. She just hoped that Emily really wasn't like Kim. She realized just how big of a risk she was taking. Kim was nice too, when they were just friends.

Garcia arrived at the house around 1 AM. She unlocked the door and found JJ sitting on the couch watching TV.

"Hello my blue-eyed beauty." Garcia said with a smile as she sat down on the couch, next to JJ after having locked the door.

"Hi, Pen." JJ said with a smile.

"So, I heard you two were going to talk, how did that go?" Garcia asked, unable to keep the excitement from her voice.

"Well, I have a date." JJ said with a small smile.

Garcia squealed and hugged JJ tight. "I'm so happy for you!" She said, excitedly.

JJ couldn't help but smile. Garcia pulled back from the hug.

"Do you already know what you're going to wear? What day is it going to be? What time?" Garcia asked, her words coming out of her mouth like racing cars at 150 mph.

"Calm down, Pen." JJ said with a laugh. "It's tomorrow at 7." She said with a nervous smile.

"That's fantastic, Jayje! You won't regret this." Garcia said, a little slower and more serious.

"I know, but she might." JJ said, quietly.

"Are you crazy? She loves you more than anyone in this world. She has for a very long time, she just never admitted it because you were already in a relationship. Emily is not like Kim, JJ. She's not that kind of person." Garcia said, honestly. She knew that JJ had doubts.

"What if she is? Kim was nice too, in the beginning." JJ said, quietly.

"JJ, how long have you known Emily?" Garcia asked.

"A few years." JJ said with a shrug.

"And how many times have you known her to be anything but nice towards you?" Garcia asked.

"None. I know, Pen, but a relationship is different." JJ insisted.

"Emily won't change, JJ. I know she won't and deep down you know she won't too, you're just afraid that she will be like Kim, but Emily is nothing like that, JJ. I know a few of her ex's. She's the best, Jayje. Emily and a couple of her ex's broke up on good terms. She only broke up on very bad terms with one of them and that's because she found the bitch sleeping with her best friend, well, now ex-best friend." Garcia explained.

"She was cheated on?" JJ asked, feeling bad for Emily. She'd never been cheated on, at least not that she knew about, so she could only imagine that pain.

"Yeah. Imagine catching your best friend in bed, sleeping with your girlfriend. It's pretty awful." Garcia said.

"Yeah." JJ said, shaking her head. "Do you think she will constantly think I'm cheating on her?" JJ asked, in a need-to-know tone.

"No, I don't think so. She trusts you, Jayje. She trusts you with her life. But it's something you two will have to talk about in the near-future." Garcia said.

JJ nodded. Her doubts still remained and they wouldn't go away that quick, but she was willing to take a chance. She was ready to take that risk.

"I know you don't believe it right now, but you will, once you realize that Emily loves you. She will treat you right, she won't ever treat you like Kim did." Garcia said, looking at JJ.

JJ nodded once again, still not knowing what to believe. Her trust was shattered the first time Kim lay a hand on her. As the months went by, the bruises came and went, leaving JJ broken and without knowing who to trust and what to believe. Now, she had an opportunity with a real woman. Someone who won't hurt her. Someone who may never make her feel unworthy. But her trust issues were holding her back. Kim broke the trust she had, and now, she was too afraid to trust again. Fear and lack of trust. Those are the two things that JJ now had, and to be honest, she had no idea how she was going to get her trust back.

"Think about what I said, Jayje. I'm going to bed. I'll see you in the morning." Garcia said, hugging JJ and leaving her to think about what they had just talked about.

JJ sat on the couch for a few minutes before heading to her own room. She would take a chance with Emily, even if it left her even worse and more broken than she already was.

 **A/N: Sorry for the short chapter. Next one will be longer and better, I promise :)**


	21. First Date

**A/N: Here's the most awaited chapter lol I am so sorry for the late update, but here it is. Thanks for y'all's patience.**

 **elphiemolizbethbau -** I think I have a chapter with how they met already written, but I'm not sure. Anyways, here's the date :) Thanks for the review!  
 **serenitaruiz -** Here's the update. Thanks for the review!  
 **jodeebug -** I try my best :) Thanks so much! :) Thanks for the review!  
 **Guest -** Yeah hahah Garcia's awesome! :P Thanks for the review!  
 **102000QP -** Here it is, and yes, it has the date in it :) Thanks for the review!  
 **ThunderKlaus89 -** Thank you! Here's the start of them being together :) Hope you like it. Thanks for the review!  
 **AbsterStories -** Thanks! I try my best to describe the friendship those two have :P Here's their date, hope you like it :) Thanks for the review!  
 **becarefulcontentspriceless -** Well, wait no more, the date is finally here! Thanks for the review!  
 **rmpcmfan -** Here's the next chapter. Thanks for the review!  
 **Thalie57 -** Well, here's the next chapter. Thanks for the review!

* * *

The next day, it was almost time for their date. Emily was doing a few more touch-ups on her mascara before she left to go get JJ.

When she got to the house, she knocked on the door and waited. She wore a fitted T-shirt, a pair of jeans and a leather jacket.

The door opened to reveal Garcia and JJ. She gave her usual greeting to Garcia before turning to JJ. JJ was dressed in skinny-jeans, a nice shirt and a jean jacket.

"Hey, beautiful." Emily said with a smile, finally being able to utter the words without fear.

JJ blushed, making Emily's smile widen even more.

"You're the beautiful one." JJ said shyly.

Garcia watched the interaction without saying a word, just a grin on her face.

"And that is where you're wrong." Emily said with a smile, watching JJ shake her head, denying it. "Are you ready?" She asked before JJ had a chance to respond verbally.

"Yeah." JJ said, nodding.

"Okay, let's go then." Emily said, holding her hand out for JJ to take as they bade goodbye to Garcia. When JJ took it, Emily led the way to the car, waiting for the gorgeous blonde to get in before getting into the driver's seat. Neither one of them noticed Garcia taking pictures.

"Do you have anything in mind? Any place you want to go?" Emily asked.

JJ looked at her as if searching for the answer Emily wanted.

JJ shook her head, slowly, not knowing if that was the right thing to do.

"Okay, then I guess we'll have to go with what I have planned." Emily said, smiling and ignoring JJ's confusion as the blonde wondered what was in store.

They drove for a while, before they reached a dock. JJ looked at Emily, puzzled but Emily just smiled.

She parked the car, got out and opened JJ's door, waiting for JJ to climb out.

She took JJ's hand in hers and led the way to a medium sized boat. She released JJ's hand, climbed into the boat and offered her hand again to help JJ in. Once they had boarded, Emily turned to chuckle at JJ's bewildered face.

"This is my uncle's boat. I asked him if we could use it. I remember about a year ago, you told me that you would love to watch the sunset on a boat in the middle of the ocean. So, are you ready?" Emily asked, with a smile as she saw the expression of shock cross JJ's face.

"You remember that?" JJ asked, still nonplused.

"Honey, I remember that and much more." Emily said with a chuckle. "Let's go?" She asked.

JJ nodded. Kim had never gone through half of the trouble to do something that JJ liked and here Emily was on their very first date, putting in the effort to do something JJ would enjoy.

JJ smiled to herself a little more before turning her grin to Emily. "Yeah, let's go." She said, excitedly, as she looked at Emily with contentment.

Emily laughed and started walking towards the wheel with JJ in tow.

"Do you know how to drive it?" JJ asked, looking at the weird buttons and maps and the compass.

Emily laughed and nodded. "Yeah, I learned when I was younger. My uncle used to take me fishing with him." She said with a smile.

"Okay." JJ said, nodding.

Emily started the boat and sped through the ocean, making JJ laugh, their hair blowing in the wind.

Emily felt JJ's hands on her shoulders and smiled, she was going to teach JJ to trust again.

Emily continued to speed through the ocean until she was exactly where she wanted to be. They had a perfect view of the sunset. Emily turned the boat off, grabbing a blanket and JJ's hand.

When they got to the front of the boat, Emily spread the blanket before turning back to JJ.

"Why don't you sit down? I'll be right back." Emily said with a soft smile.

JJ nodded and sat as she watched Emily walk away.

She waited until Emily made her way back with two glasses and a bottle of wine.

"Now let's hope neither one of us gets tipsy and falls off the boat." Emily joked as she sat down next to JJ.

JJ chuckled nervously. "I don't think it'll get to that point, right?" JJ said, testing the waters to see what Emily would say.

"Of course not, honey. It was a joke." Emily said with a smile. "Plus, I have to drive this thing back." She said with a chuckle.

JJ smiled a little relieved. Alcohol always influenced Kim to hurt her, she didn't want Emily to be the same.

Emily poured the wine into both cups before handing one to JJ.

She raised her own glass for a toast. "To new beginnings." She said, making eye contact with a smile.

"To new beginnings." JJ repeated, mirroring Emily's happy expression as they clinked their glasses together.

They took a sip of their wine and Emily laid down first knowing that JJ would never initiate the action.

She watched as JJ slowly followed suit, lying down beside her.

Emily put her arm behind her own head looking up at the sky. She could lie next to JJ like this forever.

"It's beautiful." JJ whispered softly after about half an hour of just lying there in silence, watching the sun slowly descend.

"Not as beautiful as you." Emily whispered back as she turned her head to look at JJ.

JJ looked at her before shaking her head and looking back at the sky.

Emily propped herself up on her elbow and looked at JJ's face.

"It's true." She insisted.

JJ swallowed and looked at Emily. Her eyes held so much emotion that it surprised Emily.

Emily slowly reached out tracing JJ's jaw gently.

"This has been the best date I have ever been on. I can't believe you went through all this trouble just to do something I like." JJ whispered, her eyes becoming a little moist.

"You deserve all this and more, Jayje. I promise." Emily said, resting her hand on JJ's cheek and looking at her lips before looking into her bright blue eyes. She bit her own lip, holding eye contact for a few more seconds before lowering her own lips slowly to meet JJ's.

JJ's heart was pounding in her chest. Was Emily going to kiss her? She couldn't help the nervous feeling she had at the suspense of what was going to happen. Would Emily want more than just a kiss? She wasn't ready for that.

Her thoughts suddenly stopped, like her brain had been switched off, as she felt the softest lips on hers.

She closed her eyes to the feeling, put her hand on Emily's waist and let herself get lost in the moment.

Emily let her lips glide softly over JJ's before pulling back, making eye contact with JJ again.

JJ was speechless until she looked into Emily's eyes. "You're so gentle." She whispered. She wondered if this was all just a dream.

Emily smiled down at her. "That's what you deserve, JJ. I promise." Emily said taking a sip of her wine, before lieing back down.

"I've been wanting to do that for so long." Emily whispered, placing her arm behind JJ's head.

JJ lifted her head a bit to let Emily place her arm under it before laying back onto Emily's shoulder.

They watched as the sky darkened and the stars appeared.

After several minutes passed, JJ spoke up.

"She never kissed me like that. She was always rough." JJ said, opening up a little to Emily.

Emily didn't need confirmation on who 'she' was, she knew that JJ was referring to Kim.

"I know, and you deserved so much better than that. You deserve gentleness and softness. You didn't deserve the way she treated you. You'll only know love from now on. No more hurt and no more pain, just love." Emily said as she felt JJ hide her face in her shoulder. She felt the hot tears on her arm and hugged JJ close to her.

"You're okay now, I promise." Emily whispered as she kissed the top of JJ's head, holding her protectively in her arms.

Of course JJ would be emotional. Emily was in no way, shape, or form like Kim. Emily was gentle: the exact opposite of what Kim was.


	22. I Love Having You Around

**A/N: Updates are going to be a little sketchy. I am so sorry, but I got some personal stuff going on. I'll try to update whenever I can though.**

 **jodeebug -** Thank you! I'm glad you liked it. Thanks for the review!  
 **elphiemolizbethbau -** Thank you! Here's the next chapter. Thanks for the review!  
 **starie78 -** Sorry, there isn't a chapter on that, but lets imagine that she did like to hear about it haha. Thanks for the review!  
 **102000QP -** Yeah :) I'm glad you liked it. Thanks for the review!  
 **HopeLoveLife -** Hahaha sorry I couldn't update earlier, but like I said, personal stuff. Glad you like it though. Thanks for the review!  
 **becarefulcontentspriceless -** Hahahah we'll see :P Glad you liked it. Thanks for the review!  
 **ThunderKlaus89 -** Glad you liked it. Here's the next chapter. Thanks for the review!  
 **Crdr -** Hahaha lol no food on this one :P Maybe on the next date ;) Thanks for the review!  
 **Kensi1997 -** Hahahah we'll see how that goes :P Thanks for the review!  
 **T-Rex Ninja Kid -** Hahaha glad you liked it. As for Kim, I guess you'll just have to wait and see ;) Thanks for the review!  
 **AbsterStories -** She's exactly what JJ needs right now :) Glad you liked it. Here's the next chapter. Thanks for the review!  
 **Thalie57 -** Lets see if Emily can make JJ believe in herself again. Thanks for the review!

* * *

Three days passed since their first date and it had been two weeks and four days since JJ had texted Emily to meet her at the park on that fateful day. JJ returned to work and they had found an apartment that JJ liked so she could finally move back into a place of her own soon.

Emily had told JJ that she and Derek would move everything to the new building so JJ wouldn't have to return to her old apartment.

"Thanks, Em. I really appreciate it." She said with a grateful smile.

"You're welcome. I'll call the movers and then Derek and I will box the rest of the stuff and bring it to your new apartment, how does that sound?" Emily asked.

"Sounds great." JJ said with a smile. "I can help with boxing the stuff though; you guys don't need to do it by yourself." JJ said.

"No, it's okay. We'll ask Hotch, Rossi and Reid for help. It's fine JJ, really, don't worry so much." Emily said with a small chuckle, putting her arm around JJ's shoulders as they walked through the parking lot of the BAU.

"Of course I worry; I don't want you guys doing things for me that I can do." JJ said.

"Jayje, listen, I know you hate having other people do things for you, but you and I both know that you going back to that house is a bad idea." Emily stated gently, but matter-of-factly.

JJ remained quiet, knowing that Emily was right.

"I'm not saying this to make you feel bad. You have nothing to feel bad about. It's not your fault that what happened there happened, okay? I just don't want you to relive it unnecessarily." Emily explained as they stopped next to JJ's car.

"I know, Em. And thanks for doing this. It really means a lot to me." JJ said with a smile, looking at Emily.

"No thanks needed, anything for my beautiful angel." Emily said, kissing JJ's forehead.

JJ blushed as she looked at the ground. She was still getting used to the way Emily treated her and all the compliments she received on a daily basis.

"Alright, I'll see you later, then?" Emily asked with a smile.

"Yeah." JJ said with a smile before it slowly faded. "Just don't bring the bed or the couch. I already have new ones." She said quietly.

"Okay, baby. We won't bring them." Emily said softly.

She kissed JJ's lips softly before going to her own vehicle, both getting into their own cars and heading in different directions to go to different locations.

Emily and the rest of the team, except for JJ and Garcia, were helping to get JJ's place in order. They had put the furniture in its place in JJ's new apartment after the movers had transported it from one apartment to the other.

As they finished up, Emily thanked the rest of the team. She asked them if they wanted to order pizza and just relax, but Hotch had to get home to Jack, Rossi had to run some errands, and Reid said he still had a few books he wanted to read. Morgan agreed to stay for a while but only until Garcia arrived. He was planning to go out with her so he couldn't stay for pizza.

Pretty soon, Emily and Morgan were both just sitting around, each waiting for their friends to arrive

The door opened and JJ walked in before standing there stunned. She couldn't believe that she finally had her own place to stay. A place that didn't make her want to cry every time she walked through the door.

Morgan got up and soon enough he and Garcia were out the door, leaving just Emily and JJ.

Emily smiled as she walked over to JJ and placed a kiss on her forehead.

"Want to see the rest?" She asked.

JJ nodded with a smile.

Emily led her through the house, showing the furnished rooms before leading her to the bedroom. She opened the door and let JJ look at the inside of it.

JJ smiled when she was able to walk into the bedroom with no memories at all of what had happened. She looked at the new bed she had bought. She had, on purpose, bought one completely different from the one back at her old apartment. She wanted no memories from that night or any other night that Kim had hurt her.

She turned back to Emily and smiled.

"Thanks, Em." JJ said, reaching out carefully to take Emily's hand. She wanted to kiss Emily, but she was afraid to initiate contact.

Emily, expertly, understood what JJ needed and leaned in slowly. When she finally reached JJ's lips, she touched them with her own, moving her mouth against JJ's in a slow, but meaningful kiss.

"Like I said before, only the best for my angel." She said with a smile before kissing JJ's forehead and taking her by the hand, leading her back to the living room.

They sat down on the couch.

"What do you think about ordering a pizza?" Emily asked. "Or I could leave you alone to finally have some quiet." She added with a chuckle.

"No, I like being with you. I actually love to have you around." JJ admitted with a small smile. "Pizza sounds great. I'm actually kind of hungry." She said with another smile.

Emily smiled and got up, grabbing her cell-phone. "Okay, I'm just going to order real quick." She said as she began to search for the pizza place's number.

She placed the order and then came back to sit on the couch next to JJ.

"So, you like your new apartment?" Emily asked with a smile.

"Yeah, I really love it and it feels more like...home." JJ admitted.

Emily gave her a sad smile. "I know. But just remember that this is your home now and nothing bad is going to happen here." Emily said.

"I hope not because moving again is going to be a lot of trouble." JJ joked, but only cracking a small, sad smile.

"It won't." Was all Emily said, but JJ could see the sincerity in those chocolate brown eyes as she nodded. Maybe this would be the home where nothing bad happened, maybe her relationship with Emily really was a fresh start.


	23. Can You Stay?

**elphiemolizbethbau -** Hahaha yes she is :P Thanks :) Thanks for the review!  
 **jodeebug -** Hahahah I don't know where the slow dance is going to come in. I want to make JJ comfortable with Emily before they go into that. Patience is a virtue, my friend hahaha! Thanks for the review!  
 **serenitaruiz -** Yeah, she is. Thanks for the review!  
 **ThunderKlaus89 -** Yeah, we'll see what happens. Thanks for the review!  
 **102000QP -** Thanks. Thanks for the review!  
 **rmpcmfan -** Yeah :P Thanks for the review!  
 **starie78 -** Yeah :) Thanks for the review!  
 **Thalie57 -** Yeah :P We'll see what happens :) Thanks for the review!  
 **AbsterStories -** Hahaha thanks :P Yeah :P We'll see :) Here's the next chapter. Thanks for the review!

* * *

Finally, the pizza guy arrived. JJ paid him and carried the pizza over to where Emily was sitting on the couch. She put the pizza down on the coffee table and opened it along with the bottle of Pepsi Emily had ordered.

Each one of them took a slice and started eating. JJ grabbed the remote for the TV and turned it on.

They had both already changed into sweat pants and a t-shirt so that they could be more comfortable. Emily had brought her go-bag with her, so she had the extra comfortable clothes.

"What do you want to watch?" JJ asked Emily as she flipped through some channels.

"Whatever you want." Emily said with a shrug.

"Okay. Is this okay?" JJ asked as she looked at Emily.

"Yeah, it's perfect." Emily replied with a smile as JJ finally settled on a channel.

They watched TV and ate the pizza.

When they were done, Emily checked her watch.

"I better get going. It's getting late and we have work tomorrow." She said as she started to get up.

"Wait." JJ said, reaching her hand out for Emily, but retracting it immediately. "Could you maybe- Would it be okay if you...stayed...with me...tonight? I mean I don't think I'm ready for-I don't think I can-" She was stopped by Emily's finger on her lips.

"Shh. Calm down." Emily said, sitting back down on the couch, looking at JJ with a small smile.

"I'm sorry." JJ immediately apologized, wondering if asking was a mistake.

"Don't be. I know you're not ready for anything more and that's perfectly fine. I'll stay with you if you want me to." Emily said with a smile.

"You will? You don't mind?" JJ asked, timidly.

"Of course I don't mind, Jayje. If you're okay with it, then I'm okay with it." Emily said, kissing JJ's cheek.

JJ nodded. She really hoped Emily didn't want to do anything more than just sleep; she wasn't anywhere near ready, but Emily assured her that she didn't so it was okay, right? She said she wouldn't, so she wouldn't, right? But even if she did, JJ knew she had to give it to Emily. I mean, she did ask Emily to stay after all, right?

"Do you want me to stay with you in the same bed or do you want me to stay in the guest room?" Emily asked, giving JJ a choice. "I'm fine either way. I don't want you doing anything that makes you feel uncomfortable or anything that you feel like you're not ready for, okay?" Emily explained.

"I-You wouldn't mind staying in the same bed as me?" JJ asked incredulously, making sure that she hadn't heard her wrong.

"Of course I wouldn't, but I don't want you to feel uncomfortable. Why is that so surprising?" Emily asked as she looked at JJ in confusion, making JJ lower her head, avoiding Emily's concerned gaze.

"Why do you want to stay with me?" JJ whispered quietly, avoiding Emily's question as her voice wavered. She needed to know if Emily had any second intentions besides sleeping because she had to prepare herself if that's what Emily wanted.

Emily, reading JJ like a book, could tell exactly why JJ asked that question.

"Not for that, Jayje. I just want to hold you; I want to make you feel safe. I only want that when you're ready. I swear on my own life." Emily explained as she rubbed JJ's arm up and down, gently. "Why is it so surprising that I would want to stay in the same bed as you?" Emily asked once again.

"Kim always made me sleep on the couch. She never let me sleep on the bed with her." JJ explained. _'The only night she let me sleep on the bed was the night I texted you to meet me.'_ JJ added silently in her mind.

"You can't be serious." Emily mumbled quietly to herself. "Do you trust me enough to stay in the same bed? Do you trust me not to hurt you?" She asked, looking into JJ's blue eyes.

JJ thought for a second before nodding. She trusted Emily enough for that, didn't she? There was a small part of her that wasn't sure if she should trust Emily, but she shook the thought away. She would be okay.

"Okay and do you _want_ me to stay in the same bed as you? You have a choice here, there'll be no consequences whatsoever, no matter what you choose." Emily told her, making her relax.

JJ hesitated but then said in a small voice. "Yes."

"Okay, then." Emily said as she picked JJ up, bridal style, surprising her and making her squeal unexpectedly, making her cheeks turn red with embarrassment.

Emily laughed at JJ's reaction as she carried her all the way to JJ's bedroom.

When they got there, Emily lay JJ gently on top of the bed, before going around the bed to the other side, laying down on her stomach beside JJ. She pulled the covers over them both and propped herself up on her elbows so she could look at JJ.

"You okay?" She asked as JJ lay on her back, looking at Emily. Since Emily was propped up on her elbows, laying on her stomach, she was hovering over JJ, but not close enough to scare her or give her the wrong idea.

"Yeah. It's the first time in a long time since I've slept in the same bed as someone though." JJ said and Emily's eyes immediately found JJ's.

"And if you don't want it to be, then it won't be the last. This is how a relationship is supposed to be. Two people sleeping in the same bed without the intention of hurting each other." Emily said, kissing JJ's forehead.

She let her lips linger before she pulled away.

"Little by little, chance by chance, I will prove to you that a relationship isn't about hurting each other. It's not about pain, and I will prove to you every single chance that I get that I will never hurt you." Emily said, sincerely.

JJ nodded with a small smile.

"I know." She whispered with a smile, gazing into Emily's eyes.


	24. Bruises

**elphiemolizbethbau -** Hahahah lol yes it is :P Thanks for the review!  
 **helly1bradleywyatt -** Thank you! I try my best to make this story as believable as possible. Thanks for the review!  
 **Guest -** Yes she is lol hahah Thanks for the review!  
 **Crdr -** Thank you! Sorry for the short updates! Thanks for the review!  
 **ThunderKlaus89 -** Hahahaha yeah lol Thanks for the review!  
 **Thalie57 -** Yeah :) Here's the next chapter :) Thanks for the review!  
 **AbsterStories -** Exactly. Thanks! We'll see about the nightmare thing, maybe, maybe not. Here's the next chapter. Thanks for the review!

* * *

"Ouch!" JJ yelped, grimacing, as she turned on her side.

"What is it? What happened? Are you okay?" Emily asked, worried.

"Yeah, sorry. It's just my bruises." JJ said as she turned on her back again, gripping her hip.

"Are you sure you don't want nothing for the pain?" Emily asked.

"No. It's fine. They're already fading, but they still hurt. Especially the ones on my hips." JJ said.

"The ones on your hips?" Emily asked. She didn't know about that.

"I-Uhm, it's nothing." JJ said and Emily could immediately tell that she didn't want to talk about it, so she left it alone.

Emily tentatively placed her hand on JJ's hip, on top of her clothes, gently letting it caress the place where JJ said it hurt.

JJ removed Emily's hand carefully and lifted her shirt a little and moved her pants down just enough for Emily to see the hand-shaped bruises on JJ's hips.

Emily closed her eyes slowly as she saw them, letting out a breath slowly to calm herself down. Her blood was boiling. She felt JJ put the hand that was earlier on her hip back where it was, except this time, Emily's hand was directly on skin. She opened her brown eyes to see the emotion in JJ's blue ones.

"Jayje?" She asked as she let her thumb gently soothe the bruises on her hip.

"I trust you. I know that you won't hurt me. I just needed reassurance of that. I'm sorry that sometimes I get scared, but Kim did a lot to me, not just physically but mentally too and even though you're not like her, sometimes I'm terrified that I will make you mad. I'm terrified that I'll do something that will make you snap, just like I did with Kim. I always had to walk on eggshells around her because I knew that if I said the wrong thing then I was going to be punished. You know, she was jealous of you. She saw me with you because she had been following me around and she got really mad. She thought I was cheating on her with you. I swore to her that I wasn't, that I wouldn't do something like that, but it was useless." JJ paused as her eyes glistened with unshed tears, before she took a deep breath and continued. "She loved to slap me, so whenever she got the chance, I would feel the sting of her hand on my cheek. When she drank a lot it was worse though. One time I got home and she was drunk. She told me that she saw me with you and pushed me hard against the wall. She put her hands around my neck and started squeezing. I couldn't breathe. She told me that I was worthless, that nobody cared about me and I was just another 'worthless slut'." JJ said, shaking her head before continuing. "She told me that nobody would ever care about me and that I should feel grateful that she did. She punched me in the stomach and kicked me over and over again. She told me I was a waste of breath, a waste of space and continued to hit me. I begged her to stop. I wasn't strong enough to stop her. All I could do was beg her to stop, but that was useless. She said I was her 'bitch'." JJ said in disgust. "After a while I started to believe that I deserved it and I believed every single word she said to me. I gave up. I wasn't strong enough to make her stop." JJ said with tears in her eyes as she finished telling Emily part of the hell she was put through.

Emily's hand continued to caress JJ's hip as her other hand went to JJ's cheek, her elbow helping her maintain balance as she was still laying down on the bed. She looked into JJ's eyes once again, making sure she maintained eye contact as she spoke.

"You didn't make Kim snap. She hurt you because she wanted to, not because you made her do it. You're stronger than you think, honey. I'm nothing like her. While she slapped you I caress your cheek." Emily said as she did so. "While she called you a worthless slut and her bitch, which you are not, I call you my angel. While she hit you, I wrap my arms around you to make sure you feel safe. While she was rough with you, I kiss your lips gently." She continued as she kissed JJ's lips, with such softness that the kiss and her words combined made JJ's heart melt. "While she made you feel worthless, I try to make you feel like a princess. While she told you that nobody else would care about you, here I am. _I_ care about you. I may not be perfect but I think that proves that I'm nothing like her. You don't ever have to walk on eggshells around me or be afraid that you might say something that will anger me because I will never hurt you. I'm not saying that we won't ever argue, because I'm sure we'll have arguments, but those arguments will never turn physical. I will never lay a single finger on you no matter how heated our arguments get. Never, pretty girl. You will only know love from now on. No more pain." Emily said as she continued to maintain eye contact. She lowered her lips to JJ's in another gentle kiss. She went to pull back, but JJ didn't let her. She kissed her passionately for a while longer before they both pulled back, air becoming a necessity.

"I'm not ready yet, and I don't think I will be for a little while, but when I am, I'll give myself to you. All of me. I want to feel your love, your gentle touch, I'm just not fully recovered from what happened with Kim yet." JJ said, sincerely.

"And that's okay. I'll wait. There's no hurry. I need you to focus on recovering before making that decision. We have all the time in the world." Emily said as she stopped the movements her thumb was making on JJ's hip.

JJ nodded to what Emily said.

Emily pulled the covers back a little and looked into JJ's eyes as she sat up in bed.

"I'm not going to hurt you, I promise. Do you trust me?" Emily asked.

JJ didn't know what Emily was going to do, but she knew she wouldn't hurt her or do anything that JJ didn't want to do, so she nodded without hesitance.

Emily lowered her lips to JJ's stomach gently kissing every single bruise there before pulling back, looking at the hand-shaped bruises on JJ's hips. She let her fingertips ghost over JJ's skin while looking into her eyes.

She watched the tears in JJ's eyes as they shined with raw emotion, but she knew it wasn't from fear. She had never felt this way before and the gentleness was making her emotional.

She lowered her lips to JJ's hips, placing soothing, tender kisses along the bruises inflicted before she lowered JJ's shirt again and placed a soft, soothing kiss on her lips.

"What happened to you will never happen again. Not with me, baby." Emily whispered as she lay back down next to JJ, pulling the covers over them and wiping JJ's tears away.

JJ turned into Emily and Emily placed her arms protectively around her.

JJ lay in Emily's arms feeling safe, something she hadn't felt in a long time. She sighed as she lay her head on Emily's chest, listening to her heartbeat.

That's when Emily did something that surprised JJ. She started singing. She had a pretty good voice too. JJ listened to every word as she slowly drifted off to sleep, feeling loved and protected.

Hiding from the rain and snow, trying to forget but I won't let go  
Looking at a crowded street, listening to my own heart beat  
So many people, all around the world  
Tell me where do I find, someone like you girl

Take me to your heart, take me to your soul  
Give me your hand, before I'm old  
Show me what love is, haven't got a clue  
Show me that wonders can be true  
They say nothing lasts forever, we're only here today  
Love is now or never, bring me far away  
Take me to your heart, take me to your soul  
Give me your hand and hold me  
Show me what love is, be my guiding star  
It's easy, take me to your heart

Standing on a mountain high, looking at the moon through a clear blue sky  
I should go and see some friends, but they don't really comprehend  
Don't need too much talking, without saying anything  
All I need is someone, who makes me want to sing

Take me to your heart, take me to your soul  
Give me your hand before I'm old  
Show me what love is, haven't got a clue  
Show me that wonders can be true  
They say nothing lasts forever, we're only here today  
Love is now or never, bring me far away  
Take me to your heart, take me to your soul  
Give me your hand and hold me  
Show me what love is, be my guiding star  
It's easy, take me to your heart  
Take me to your heart, take me to your soul  
Give me your hand and hold me  
Show me what love is, be my guiding star  
It's easy, take me to your heart

When Emily finished singing, she noticed that JJ had fallen asleep peacefully. She smiled at how cute she looked, her blonde bangs in her face and her mouth slightly open. She removed the bangs from her girlfriend's face before kissing the top of her head and drifting off to sleep herself.

 **A/N: Italics are lyrics to the song 'Take me to your heart'.**


	25. No Wrong Answer

**becarefulcontentspriceless -** Thanks for your review!  
 **jodeebug -** Thank you! Everything's good :) I hope everything's fine with you too and...I miss you too! :D Thanks for your review!  
 **elphiemolizbethbau -** Hahaha yeah, I was pretty sure you were gonna say that haha Thanks for your review!  
 **Guest -** I'm glad you like it :) Thanks for your review!  
 **Starie78 -** I'm glad you liked it. Thanks for your review!  
 **ThunderKlaus89 -** Hahaha we'll see when that happens ;) Thanks for your review!  
 **AbsterStories -** Exactly! That's what I'm trying to do; build JJ's trust in Emily slowly. Thanks for your review!  
 **MochaGirl14 -** I'm pretty sure you'll find her some day :) Thanks for your review!  
 **Crdr -** Yeah, I saw that the italics didn't work, but I think y'all understood that it was a song. Thanks for your review!  
 **Kensi1997 -** Thank you! I'm glad you like it. Thanks for your review!  
 **Thalie57 -** I'm glad you like it. Thanks for your review!  
 **guiltypleasure95 -** I'm glad you think so. I try my best to make it more realistic without going overboard. Thanks for your review!  
 **T-Rex Ninja Kid -** I'm glad you liked it :) Thanks for your review!

 **A/N:** Needless to say, I am so sorry I haven't been updating recently. Hopefully that will change. I may update twice a week, but I think I'll only update once a week now. Sorry guys and thanks for the comprehension. 

* * *

Two more days passed before Emily decided to invite JJ over.

She went up to JJ's office and knocked on the door.

She heard JJ's voice telling her to come in. She opened the door and stepped into the office, closing the door behind her.

"Hey beautiful, what are you doing?" Emily asked with a smile as she walked over to JJ.

"Reviewing some files to see what our next case will be." JJ said with a sigh. This was the worst part of her job. She had to actually choose which case they would take.

Emily went around JJ so she was standing behind her girlfriend. She placed her hands on JJ's shoulders, feeling the blonde tense up under her touch, before massaging the knotted muscles. JJ shuddered and relaxed as Emily gently worked to get the tension off of her. She felt a soft kiss being placed on the top of her head. She didn't worry about any of this because no one could see. The blinds were closed.

"Are you okay?" Emily asked, leaning on the desk so she could look at JJ.

"Yeah. It's just some of these cases are really..." JJ didn't know which word to use to describe the cases, they were just...

"Horrible?" Emily asked, providing the word to describe the cases.

"Yeah." JJ confirmed, nodding. "But anyways, it's our job, so..." She said.

"Yeah, doesn't make it any easier, though." Emily said and let a few seconds pass before speaking again. "I want to ask you a question." She said.

"Okay?" JJ half-asked, half-stated.

"What are your thoughts on coming over to my house? Maybe spend the night?" Emily asked. "You don't have to if you don't want to." She added, quickly.

JJ thought for a minute. Emily had spent the night at her apartment three days ago and nothing had happened. Emily didn't make her do anything she didn't want to do, so maybe it would be okay.

"Okay." JJ said, nodding.

"Yeah?" Emily asked with a grin.

"Yeah." JJ confirmed, smiling back.

Emily kissed her forehead before saying she had to get the rest of her paperwork done and leaving JJ's office.

* * *

When it was time to leave, JJ descended the stairs and perched herself on the edge of Emily's desk.

"Ready to leave or...?" JJ asked, uncertainly.

"Yeah. Night guys." Emily said and JJ did the same before the two left.

They were walking through the parking lot, heading to their cars.

"Do you need to swing by your apartment to get anything or do you have your go-bag with you?" Emily asked.

"I have my go-bag." She said.

"Okay. How about we take my car and I'll bring you with me to work in the morning instead of taking both cars?" Emily suggested.

"Yeah, sounds good, I just need to get my go-bag from my car." JJ said, stopping and looking at Emily as if asking for permission to go get it.

"Okay, I'll wait by my car." Emily said as she leaned against the car, watching JJ take the bag out of her car and walking over to where she was waiting.

"Ready?" Emily asked with a smile.

JJ nodded and Emily straightened up before opening JJ's door and then going to the driver's side to get in herself.

"Any stops you want to make or can we head straight home?" Emily asked as she pulled out of the parking lot.

"Whichever you want." JJ said. She hated not being able to read Emily to see what she was supposed to say.

"Jayje, I'm asking you. I want to know what you want. I don't want you to feel like you have to give a 'right answer'. There is no right answer and there is no wrong answer, there is only your answer and that's what I want to hear, okay? I understand why you look at me searching for the 'right answer', but I don't want you to feel like you have to, babe." Emily said, taking JJ's hand in hers, noticing the blonde flinch slightly.

JJ nodded as she felt Emily's thumb soothe her knuckles gently. She hated that she had these reactions, but what if Emily said she didn't mind what her answer was, but then did mind? What if JJ gave her an answer she didn't like?

"What are you thinking about?" Emily asked, keeping her eyes on the road.

JJ shook her head. "Nothing." She said, as she looked out the window.

"Talk to me, baby." Emily said, gently.

It took a few minutes, but JJ eventually took a deep breath before starting to talk.

"What if I give you the wrong answer?" JJ whispered, still looking at the window. She glanced at Emily before looking out the window again.

"There is no wrong answer." Emily said, softly but firmly.

JJ wouldn't dare even glance at Emily for what she was going to say next. She knew she was going to get slapped for it, but she had to say, she just had to. She had to say it because it was true. She braced herself for the slap she was going to get. She decided to look at Emily while she said it, because she wanted to be prepared for when Emily's hand came up to strike her.

 **A/N: So, what are your guesses on what JJ is going to say? I had to make a little drama at the end because the chapter would be too long if I continued, so I divided it in two and left you with a little cliffhanger. Let me know your thoughts ;)**


	26. That's What She Said

"That's what she said." JJ said, quietly, but loud enough for Emily to hear as she looked at her.

Emily glanced at her about to say something, but decided to stop the car first. She parked on the side of the road and looked at JJ.

JJ winced, ready to be smacked. She saw Emily's hand come up to her cheek and waited to feel the sting, but it never came. What she felt though, was something very different than she expected. She felt Emily's hand softly caressing her cheek. She looked at Emily in confusion and Emily turned in her seat as best as she could so she could face JJ.

"I'm not her and I will keep saying it until you believe me. I know you were expecting to be slapped right now, I'm a profiler, remember? But I told you and I'll tell you again... I. will. never. hurt. you." Emily said, punctuating each word. "There is no wrong answer. You say that that's what Kim said. Kim said that because she's a liar who loves to hurt others. She loved to hurt you. I don't. I say that because it's the truth and I'm just trying to get you to understand that. And one day, you're going to be able to look at me without an ounce of fear in your eyes and I will help you get to that day. I will make you understand that Kim said that because she was a liar, she wanted to manipulate you. That's not what I'm trying to do." Emily said, kissing JJ's lips softly. "It's not." Emily said, looking straight into JJ's eyes, before kissing her forehead and pulling back, straightening herself in her seat and starting the car again.

She grabbed JJ's hand and ran her thumbs over it as she drove. She brought it to her lips, kissing it softly as she watched JJ watching her out of the corner of her eye.

She glanced at her girlfriend, watching those beautiful blue eyes tear up before JJ turned her head to glance out the window.

She felt JJ's hand squeezing hers gently.

"Baby, don't cry. It's okay. I promise it's going to be okay." Emily said, switching between looking at the road and looking at JJ.

She pulled up in her driveway, turning the engine off and getting out. She opened JJ's door, took her hand and lead her inside. When they had finally closed the door, Emily pulled JJ into her arms. She felt the smaller woman shake as silent sobs wracked her body.

"It's okay, baby. It's okay." Emily said as she tried to comfort JJ as she felt the blonde bury her face in the crook of her neck.

Emily pulled back as she looked at JJ, letting her hand go to JJ's cheek, tracing her jaw, gently.

"I love you, JJ. I have for a very long time now. I was going to tell you that night we went out for drinks, when you said you were into girls too, but then you told me you had a girlfriend and everything so... In our relationship, there's no pressure and certainly no rush. I want us to take things slow and I don't want you to push yourself to do anything you're not ready for." Emily said as she looked JJ in the eyes and continued to trace her jaw with her fingers.

"How can you love me? I'm not lovable. I'm used and I'm not good enough for you. I've loved you for a long time, but I don't deserve you." JJ said, her blue eyes casting downwards, towards her lap.

"Don't say that, Jen. It's not true." Emily said, shaking her head as she denied what JJ was saying. It was breaking her heart the way JJ's confidence was so low.

"Yes, it is, Em." JJ said as a tear fell from the corner of her eye.

"No. That's what she told you. What she told you and the truth are two different things Jayje. She told you a lot of things that aren't true." Emily said as she remembered what Kim had said to her the day she arrested her. Had she really told JJ that Emily would just dispose of her once she got 'what she wanted'?

JJ just stayed quiet, keeping her eyes on the floor.

"Jen, did she tell you something about me?" Emily asked. She needed to know if Kim had really told JJ that.

JJ looked away as another tear fell, making a wet track on her face.

Emily reached out, carefully and gently wiping it away with her thumb.

"Tell me Jayje, did she?" Emily asked as she caressed JJ's cheek with her thumb, lightly.

JJ nodded letting a few more tears fall. She was trying not to cry, but that one sentence Kim had said to her had really hit her right in her heart.

"What did she say, baby? Tell me. It's okay." Emily assured.

"I-She-She said that you didn't care about me, that you just wanted sex and as soon as you got what you wanted that you would...dispose of me like the worthless-the worthless-" JJ didn't finish as Emily wrapped her arms around her, holding her tight.

"That's not true, you hear me? It's not true. I promise you baby; I promise you it's not true. I would never do that to anybody, let alone you. I would never use you like she did, I swear. She just put that idea into your head so you wouldn't leave her." Emily said, her voice turning more into a broken whisper at the end. She couldn't believe that Kim had made JJ think that.

"Do you really love me, Em?" JJ asked as she pulled back, locking her teary eyes with Emily's.

"I do, honey. I really do. And I know I've told you before, but I'll say it again. What she showed you wasn't love. Love doesn't hurt. I will tell you that until you believe me. Love is not about pain, it's about gentleness and softness and if you let me, I'll show you what love really is. I'm not her, Jayje. I'm nothing like her. I will never ever lay a single finger on you the way she did." Emily said as she leaned forward, kissing JJ's forehead, letting her lips linger.

She then moved her lips to JJ's nose, placing a gentle soft kiss there, watching JJ slowly close her eyes.

She closed her own before letting her lips touch JJ's in a gentle, reassuring kiss. She moved her lips gently against JJ's before pulling back and tucking JJ's hair behind her ear.

JJ reopened her eyes slowly and looked at Emily, the tears still present but lessening.

"You didn't deserve what she did to you. I told you I was going to show you what love really is. This is love. Tenderness, softness, that's love." Emily said with a small smile.

JJ nodded, accepting Emily's words. She was starting to believe Emily. Maybe Emily really did love her. Maybe she really did care about her. Maybe she wasn't like Kim after all. Just maybe, she could learn to trust again.

"I love you." Emily said, kissing JJ's lips again.

"I love you too." JJ said once they pulled back.

 **A/N: So they finally said the 3 words out loud. :)**


	27. I Have a Better Idea

**A/N: Alright guys, you asked for longer chapters, so here's a longer one for y'all :D Sorry for the long wait.**

 **serenitaruiz -** Hahaha Well, here's the next chapter! :D Thanks for the review!  
 **elphiemolizbethbau -** Hahahaha Well, I can't wait for that update! :D Thanks for the review!  
 **AbsterStories -** I'm glad you lied it :) Here's a longer one for ya :D Thanks for the review!  
 **Crdr -** Thanks! I will! :D Thanks for the review!  
 **Guest -** Here's another one :) Thanks for the review!  
 **Kensi1997 -** Awww! I'm sorry I made you cry! You're sweet :) Here's a longer chapter for you :D Thanks for the review!  
 **jodeebug -** Yeah :D Miss you too! All is well, I hope it's the same on your end :) This one is longer :D Thanks for the review!  
 **Thalie57 -** Thank you! Here's a longer chapter :D Thanks for the review!  
 **Elisabetta -** The English is great, don't worry :) Thank you! Here's the next update and thanks for the review!  
 **Atta2 -** Thank you! Here's the next chapter! :D Thanks for the review!  
 **Ryan -** I already had the chapter written out, but that was a fantastic idea. I might incorporate some of it into this story, we'll see :) Thanks for the review!  
 **tippytypewriter137 -** Well, here it is :D An it's a longer chapter :D Thanks for the review!

* * *

"Do you want me to make you something to eat?" JJ asked, quietly.

"No, I have a better idea." Emily smiled, but soon kicked herself for her choice of words when she saw the look of fear cross her girl's face.

JJ didn't know what to think; when Kim said that, she wanted sex. JJ didn't want to, but she wouldn't say no. She said 'no' to Kim a few times and look where that got her.

"If that's what you want...I won't say no..." JJ said as she closed her eyes, the tears threatening to appear again.

"Oh God..." Emily said, realizing what JJ was thinking. "That's not what I meant, baby." She said as she took a step forward, but not touching JJ just yet. She didn't want her to get the wrong idea.

JJ slowly re-opened her eyes, looking at Emily a little perplexed, her eyes a little wet.

"I should've chosen my words better, but what I meant by 'a better idea', was that you go take a long, relaxing bath while I fixed dinner." Emily explained.

"Why would you do that?" JJ asked, confusion evident on her face. She was supposed to be the one serving Emily not the other way around, right?

"Because you're not the one that's supposed to do everything, Jen. We can alternate, and every once in a while, we can even cook together. When neither of us really feels like cooking then we'll order something, okay? I know you're the one that had to have dinner always ready for Kim and do everything around the house, but that's not how it's supposed to be. We'll divide the chores, each one of us does a little bit whenever we're together. I'm not just going to sit on the couch watching TV or whatever while you do everything, Jayje. That's not going to happen." Emily said as she slowly reached out and touched JJ's arm.

JJ nodded and stepped forward, her arms tentatively reaching out to slowly hug Emily. Emily, in return, put her arms gently around JJ, resting her cheek on the top of her head.

"I'm sorry for my reaction. If you ever really want it then I'll give it to you. I don't mind..." JJ said in a whisper. She didn't really want to, but she would if that's what Emily wanted.

"Listen to me, I don't want anything that you don't want. You have the right to say no, JJ, no matter what. No means no. I'll wait until you're ready, I promise, meu amor. When I accidentally say sentences without thinking of the possible double meaning, I don't want you to think that I'm trying to get you to have sex with me, okay? I want you to know that that will only happen whenever you're ready, which could be an eternity from now, I don't care. I don't want you to ever be afraid of me. Ever." Emily said as they pulled apart.

JJ nodded. "I'm sorry. I don't want to be scared of you, it's just that some things remind me so much of Kim that I can't help my reactions." JJ confessed.

"Like what? What kinds of things?" Emily asked. She didn't want to remind JJ of Kim at all.

They slowly walked over to the couch and sat on it. Sergio then appeared, laying himself down on JJ's lap making the two women chuckle.

JJ decided to be honest with Emily. She knew in her heart that Emily wouldn't hurt her, it was her mind that sometimes made her believe she would, but right now, her heart was winning and she trusted that Emily wouldn't hurt her.

"Like now. When you said 'I have a better idea', it reminded me of her. She would say that with a smirk when she wanted...you know..." JJ said, shaking her head slightly, while petting Sergio.

"I'm sorry that you thought that's what I wanted, but I want you to know that it's not, okay?" Emily said, without thinking, once again, making JJ remember something else.

'You're lucky I even want to touch you at all! You're so disgusting that nobody but me wants to touch you!'

JJ shook her head, trying to clear the voice in her head.

"Jen? Are you okay?" Emily asked, her eyebrows furrowed in concern.

"Yeah, fine." JJ said, the shake in her voice giving away that she was lying.

"Jayje, honey, what did you remember?" Emily asked, reading JJ like a book.

"Nothing." JJ insisted, trying to act like everything was fine.

"Jen, don't lie to me. Please." Emily said in a soft, gentle voice, not wanting to seem like she was angry at JJ for lying to her. She wasn't. She just wanted to help and could only do that if she knew what JJ needed help with. She couldn't bear the thought of her own words causing JJ to relive her past pain.

"She messed me up so bad. I don't know what to think. On one hand, you telling me that you don't want it, makes me relieved because I don't think I'm ready, but on the other hand it makes me think that you don't want to touch me. She told me that I should feel lucky that she even wanted to touch me, that I'm so disgusting that nobody else would want to. Is that true, Em? Is that why you don't want it?" JJ asked looking into Emily's eyes, searching for the truth in them as her own eyes watered.

"Baby, that's not it at all. You're so beautiful and I want you, I do. I want to touch your skin and kiss your lips and make love to you. I want to make you feel loved, but I don't want to rush things. I want you to be 100% ready, but that doesn't mean that I don't want you and it most certainly doesn't mean that you're disgusting. You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. You're perfect, Jayje, don't ever doubt that. Whenever you do decide that you're ready, I want you to be 100% sure because I want to make you feel safe and loved, not scared. You're not disgusting JJ, she just wanted you to believe that because she's a manipulative bitch, but that doesn't make what she said true, okay? I love you and I just want you to feel safe and loved. I don't want you to ever feel what you felt with her. I don't ever want you to be afraid of me, angel." Emily said as she kissed JJ's lips in a love-filled soft, gentle kiss.

"I don't know what I ever did to deserve you." JJ said, shaking her head as she felt Emily wrap her up in her arms.

"You deserve everything good. You didn't deserve to be treated like Kim treated you and I promise you won't ever be treated like that again. Not with me, sweetheart." Emily said as she smiled, looking into JJ's beautiful blue eyes as she once again kissed her lips.

"Now, why don't you go take that bath and I'll take care of the rest?" Emily asked with a wink, her arms still encircled around JJ's waist, but loose enough that they were looking at each other.

"Are you sure?" JJ asked. She was still a little insecure about this.

"Yes, I'm sure. Take your time and relax. Don't worry about anything else, okay?" Emily assured.

JJ nodded and kissed Emily's lips.

"Thank you, Em. I love you." She said with a smile tugging at her lips as she moved Sergio from her lap noticing that the cat didn't look too content at being woken up.

"I love you too, baby." Emily said as she let go of JJ, letting her go upstairs, while she got ready to make dinner.

Emily smiled as JJ left for the bathroom. She could see the uncertainty in JJ's eyes, but she assured her that she would take care of dinner.

Once JJ was gone, Emily started making dinner. She took all the ingredients to make JJ's favorite food. Lasagna. She wanted to make JJ feel special and loved. She wanted her to feel safe again and she wanted to make her stop wondering if Emily was going to hurt her. Emily wanted JJ to forget Kim, to overcome what Kim had done to her, but she knew it wasn't that simple.

She put the food in the oven as she continued thinking about the beautiful girl that she loved. She loved JJ more than anything in the world. She had had her fair share of girlfriends, but none of them had ever stolen her heart like JJ did. The moment Emily met JJ, she knew that the blonde, blue eyed beauty would have her heart in her hands. It was just a matter of time.

Emily put a red towel on the table before setting two plates, two cups, two forks, two knives, two napkins and a bottle of wine. She then got two candles and set them in the middle of the table. She wanted everything to be perfect for when JJ came down the stairs. She waited for the food to be done before she turned off the oven, leaving the food in it so it wouldn't get cold. She then went over to the couch to wait for JJ. She turned the TV on and waited patiently for JJ.

10 minutes later, she heard JJ get out of the bathroom. She got up, turned off the TV and headed for the kitchen to light the candles that were placed neatly in the middle of the table.

She then heard JJ come down the stairs and met her at the bottom of them to pull her into a loving kiss.

JJ then smelled the food. She smiled and looked at Emily.

"Does that smell like-" JJ was cut off by Emily.

"Yup. Come on." Emily said with a smile, taking JJ by the hand and leading her to the kitchen.

She turned the lights off once she entered and smiled at JJ's shocked face once she saw the romantic environment, the glow from the candles acting as the only source of illumination over the beautiful scene.

"I told you I was going to show you what love is. You're special Jen, so special you don't even know, but I'm going to show you how beautiful, special, and amazing you are." Emily whispered, standing in front of JJ, kissing her cheek, lovingly.

JJ tried to find words, but she didn't really know what to say. She wasn't used to this and she wondered why in the world was Emily doing this for her.

"I don't even know what to say, Em. This is all just...so new to me. This is...I was never treated this well before in my life and much less with her. I just...thank you, Em." JJ said, almost in a whisper. They were only officially a couple for a short amount of time, but it was like they had been together for months. Emily had always treated JJ with respect. She was always a gentlewoman when it came to her, but that was just being friends. This was a whole other level and she had to admit that she loved being treated like this.

"This is the way it should have been from the start. This is what you deserve." Emily said as she led JJ to the table, waiting for her to sit down before getting the food, setting it on the table and sitting in her own chair before pouring them both a glass of wine. She wasn't lying when she said that this is the way it should have been from the start, but her sentence held two meanings. One was that JJ should have been treated like this by Kim and another was that if she had asked JJ out before Kim came along then none of the abuse would have happened to JJ. If only she had had more guts...

JJ swallowed a little as she watched Emily pour them both a glass of wine. She was still a little insecure about alcohol. She was afraid that Emily might turn at any second and become violent, even though she knew that the thought was irrational. She'd have to hide her insecurities for now. She didn't want to ruin the moment with some illogical fear of alcohol. She was relieved when Emily didn't notice.

They started to eat quietly. JJ looked up and caught Emily staring at her with a smile.

"What?" JJ asked once she had swallowed the lasagna that was in her mouth.

"Nothing." Emily said as she shook her head, still grinning like the cat who caught the canary.

"What is it?" JJ whined, making Emily laugh.

"Well, first, you look cute when you whine." Emily winked at her making her blush. "Second of all, have I told you how much I love you?" She asked with a twinkle in her eye.

JJ blushed, making Emily chuckle.

"And have I told you that I love you too? " JJ asked with a smile.

"Yes, and I love it when you say it." Emily said with another one of her smiles.

"Good, because I mean it too. I don't want you to think that I got into this relationship just so I could get over...the other one." JJ said as she looked Emily in the eye.

"I know that Jayje." Emily said, honestly.

"I knew what I wanted a long time ago, I just didn't have the guts to tell you." JJ admitted.

"Me too, although I regret not telling you." Emily said.

"Everything happens how it's supposed to happen. We can't change the past, but we can make it hurt less and you're already doing that. You have been doing it for a long time, you just didn't notice." JJ said with a small smile, grabbing Emily's hand, holding it on top of the table.

They were going to be okay, they both knew it.

Tonight there was no fear, just love.

JJ thought to herself how lucky she was. Kim never once did something even close to this for her. Around her, she always had to walk on eggshells afraid she would say something that would make Kim mad. She pushed the fears down and let herself get lost in the moment. She knew that Emily wanted to prove to her how much she loved her and she didn't want to ruin the moment, so she just let herself get lost and let go of her fears for a little while.

She did worry a little about the alcohol, though. Kim always hurt her worse when she drank, and she was afraid that Emily might not be herself if she drank alcohol, but they both had just one glass and on their first date Emily had had a glass of wine and nothing bad happened, making JJ worry a little less. One glass wouldn't make Emily hurt her, would it? No, she wouldn't do that to her, she would never lay a finger on her. JJ tucked the fear away as they continued to enjoy dinner.

They had been dating for a very short period of time, but Emily was already making her feel like a princess, just like she promised she would.

Baby steps would take them there. They both knew it.


	28. Are You Hurting?

Once they were done, they put their plates in the sink and Emily grabbed JJ's hand, leading her to the couch.

JJ had gotten a rape kit done at the hospital the day Kim had assaulted her and the doctor told her she had a few small vaginal tears and a bigger one that had required stitches. It stung when she peed and it still hurt when she walked. The female doctor said it would take about two to three weeks to heal and the stitches would come out on their own. She also said that JJ might be able to get rid of the pain about a week after the stitches came undone, but she may feel discomfort for up to a month.

Every once in a while, she would cringe in pain and hope Emily didn't see it, but Emily caught it this time. JJ had hidden it well before because Emily hadn't noticed that she was in pain before.

"Are you okay? Are you hurting?" Emily asked, concerned.

"No." JJ replied, but she knew she couldn't fool Emily. Emily could read her like a book.

"Jayje, where are you hurting? Does it still hurt to walk?" Emily asked, worriedly, as she watched JJ sit on the couch carefully.

She sat down next to her, looking right at her.

"Jen?" She asked trying to get JJ to answer.

"A little. It hurts a little." JJ answered honestly.

"Do you want some of the pain medication the doctor prescribed? " Emily asked. She didn't want to see JJ in pain.

"No, it's fine." JJ answered. She hated pills.

"Where are you hurting?" Emily asked.

"I...uhm..." She tried to come up with something. She didn't want to tell Emily where she hurt. "...my abdomen. My abdomen hurts a little bit. It's nothing, really. It'll be fine in a minute." JJ said. She wasn't really lying. Her abdomen did hurt, but she didn't want to tell Emily that it hurt to walk because of the sexual assault she had endured. Well, actually she did want to tell Emily, but she was so scared that Emily would blame her for it. It was an irrational thought, but she couldn't help but think that what if Emily did in fact tell her it was her fault? She couldn't blame Emily for thinking so. Hell, she thought so. If she hadn't told Kim 'no' those times before then Kim wouldn't have hurt her the way she did.

'You have the right to say no, JJ, no matter what. No means no.'

Those were the words that Emily had told her before, so she wouldn't blame her, right?

But still, she couldn't handle it if Emily did somehow say it was her own fault. She couldn't help but think that there was a slight chance that Emily would blame her, even though Emily had told her that she had the right to say 'no' anytime she wanted.

"Jayje, is it okay if I just take a look at your stomach? I promise I won't hurt you." Emily asked. She knew seeing the bruises would anger her, even though she's seen them before. She just wanted to make sure they were healing.

JJ looked a little unsure. She looked at Emily and immediately knew that she wouldn't hurt her, but she still felt a little insecure. She didn't want to take off her shirt because she was scared that she might somehow turn Emily on and then she would have to 'take care of business' like Kim had told her in the past.

As if Emily could read her mind, she immediately assured JJ.

"You don't have to take your shirt off, just lift it a little so I can see, but if you really feel uncomfortable then you don't have to. It's okay. You have a choice here; I'm not going to force you to lift up your shirt. If you don't want to then you can just say no, okay? You can always say no. I won't be mad, I promise." Emily told her. She didn't want JJ to feel forced to lift up her shirt. The last thing she wanted was for JJ to feel uncomfortable around her.

JJ couldn't understand herself. One minute she trusted Emily enough to lift up her shirt and the next she didn't, but she couldn't help it. It was like her trust was a roller coaster. One minute she was okay the next she wasn't. One minute she trusted Emily, the next she didn't. She didn't understand herself. What was wrong with her?

After a few seconds of thinking, she looked into Emily's eyes.

"Okay." She whispered as she started to lift her shirt, just enough for Emily to see the bruises marking her perfect skin. She had bruises covering her abdomen, her rib cage and the two hand shaped bruises on her hips that made Emily want to puke just thinking about the possibilities of how those got there. It made her blood boil knowing that Kim had hurt JJ and it made her mad at herself just thinking that JJ was being hurt and she didn't do a damn thing about it. The bruises were already starting to fade, but they were still there.

"Oh, Jesus, baby." Emily said as she gently reached out and let her fingertips brush over JJ's stomach. The night she spent at JJ's apartment, she had seen the bruises, even kissed them, but it was dark so she hadn't realized how bad they were until now.

JJ didn't even flinch. She just sat there looking away.

"Jayje, look at me, baby. It's okay, you're okay now." Emily said as she pulled JJ towards her, kissing her forehead.

JJ tried not to let the tears fall.

"Listen to me very carefully. This..." Emily started, letting her fingers once again ghost over JJ's bruised skin. "...will never happen again. You will never be hurt like that ever again. I will never hurt you like that, ever." Emily said as she let her hand caress JJ's stomach.

JJ let the tears fall, still not looking at Emily.

Emily gently let her hand go from JJ's stomach to her face, brushing her thumb over her cheek before gently tugging at her chin so she was looking at her.

"Not in that way or any other way." Emily whispered, making eye contact.

A few seconds passed with them just looking into each other's eyes before JJ spoke.

"I need to tell you something." JJ said, her voice faltering and coming out as nothing more than a broken whisper.

"Talk to me. What is it that you want to tell me?" Emily asked as she looked at JJ.

"You'll say it was my fault. You probably won't even believe me." JJ said, in a low whisper.

Emily looked into JJ's blue eyes and saw the pain she was trying to hide.

"I won't blame you, I promise. I'm right here if you want to talk and if you really don't want to, I'll be right here to hold you anyways." Emily said.

"It was my fault." JJ whispered.

"Talk to me. What is it that you think was your fault? Tell me what happened." Emily said, gently.

"What she did. I know I deserved it. You'll hate me." JJ cried.

"I can promise you that whatever it is. I won't hate you." Emily said, the honesty burning in her eyes as she looked into JJ's.

JJ looked at the floor not knowing how to tell Emily what happened.

Emily watched as JJ struggled to get the words out. She grabbed JJ's hands with one of hers and used the other to guide JJ's face so they were looking at each other again.

Emily made eye contact as she spoke. "Whatever happened, it doesn't change the fact that I love you. It won't make me hate you, I promise." She said as sincerely as possible.

JJ had her heart beating so fast that if she didn't know better, she would think it was going to jump out of her throat. She didn't know how to tell Emily.

 _'She's going to hate me. She's going to think I'm disgusting. She's going to hate me.'_ That was the only thing running through her mind.

"Jen? Honey, look at me, baby. You can trust me." Emily coached as she looked into those deep blue eyes.

"You'll know how disgusting I am. You'll know that I'm weak and pathetic and dirty." JJ mumbled as the tears gathered in her eyes before falling.

"Jayje, you're not any of those things. I promise you're not disgusting, or weak or pathetic or anything even close to that. You're beautiful, strong and sweet. You're the most incredible thing that's ever happened to me, do you understand that? You're the sweetest girl I have ever had the honor of meeting, and for you to be my girlfriend, the woman I love, that amazing feeling is just something that I can't even put into words. I want you to tell me what happened, but I want you to do that only if you're ready and only when you want to. I am here for you whenever you feel like you want to tell me, okay?" Emily said as she pulled JJ into her arms, holding her as she sobbed.

JJ buried her face in Emily's neck as she cried. She knew she could trust Emily with this, she just wasn't sure if Emily would want her after she knew the secret she held.

She pulled back and looked into Emily's eyes, before looking at the ground. Emily had one arm still around her shoulders while her left hand was holding JJ's.

"You can trust me." Emily whispered into her ear before placing a kiss to her cheek.

"I told her 'no' for a week." JJ admitted.

"Told her 'no' to what?" Emily asked even though she knew the answer.

"To sex." JJ said quietly.

Emily stayed quiet, waiting for JJ to continue.

"I guess she...uhm...couldn't wait anymore for me to say yes." JJ tried to explain as the tears fell. She didn't know what to feel anymore. She felt so many emotions, yet she felt numb at the same time.

"What did she do, baby?" Emily asked as she placed a kiss on the top of JJ's head before waiting patiently for JJ to finally tell her what had happened.

"She forced me. She made me-" JJ cut herself off as she began to sob again. "I'm so disgusting. I'm so dirty and worthless." She cried as she tried to move away from Emily's touch.

Emily didn't know if JJ was pulling away because she didn't want to be touched or if she thought Emily hated her.

"Jen, this wasn't your fault. I believe you, baby. I believe you." Emily repeated over and over again until JJ finally looked up at her.

"Do you hate me?" JJ asked in the most heart wrenching, broken, sad whisper that Emily has ever heard from her.

"Of course I don't. I love you and I will help you through this, I promise. Come here." Emily said as she opened her arms, patiently waiting for JJ to lean into them, so she could hug her.

"How can you not hate me?" JJ asked, innocently as she felt Emily's arms around her.

"Because this wasn't your fault. I'm so sorry that this happened, but I will be right here every step of the way to help you get past this. I promise." Emily said in a whisper as she blinked back tears in her own eyes.

"But I said 'no' to her for a whole week, Em. It's my fault." JJ whispered.

"JJ. Look at me, Jayje, please." Emily said as she pulled back and looked straight into JJ's eyes, grabbing a hold of her hands and holding both of them in her own. "This was not at all your fault. It was all hers. You have the right to say 'no' anytime you want to, do you understand?" Emily explained as she continued to maintain eye contact.

"Yeah, and look where that got me." JJ said, her voice breaking.

"She did that because she wanted to, not because your actions made her do it. She just waited for an opportunity so she could blame you for it." Emily said.

 _'I've been waiting for you to service me like this for a long time.'_

JJ shook the voice out of her head.

"What did you remember?" Emily asked. She knew that whenever JJ shook her head like that, she was remembering something.

"She told me that she'd been waiting a long time for me to 'service her' like that." JJ said. There was no point in trying to hide the truth from Emily anymore. Emily knew exactly when she was lying.

"For you to ser-" She cut herself off mid-sentence as she let out a growl. "I'm so going to kill her." She said as she grew angrier.

"I'm sorry." JJ apologized. It had become a habit of hers. Whenever Emily was mad she would apologize, even though she had nothing to apologize for.

"I'm not mad at you, sweetie. I'm mad at her. This wasn't at all your fault." Emily explained.

JJ looked up trying to blink back the tears and pursed her lips together.

"It's all just so fresh in my mind. I try not to remember, but the memories come to the front of my mind out of the blue." JJ explained.

"It happened recently, so it's normal to still be fresh in your mind, you just need to know that I will never ever hurt you like that or in any other way possible. Ever, Jayje. I promise you, babe." Emily said as she leaned forward, kissing JJ's forehead in a reassuring way, letting her lips linger.

JJ closed her eyes to the loving feeling. It was just so different than what she felt with Kim.

"Jen?" Emily asked, pulling back.

"Yeah?" JJ asked, reopening her eyes slowly.

"Was...was this...was this the first time it happened?" Emily asked, having difficulty asking the question.

"Yeah. I had never been forced to have sex before. She had pressured me into it before, but I had always agreed, she had never actually forced herself on me. She had always been rough before, I don't remember a time when she wasn't, but she was never this rough." JJ said, as she buried her face in the crook of Emily's neck again, feeling Emily's arms wrap around her securely.

"Did you...did you get a rape kit...at the hospital?" Emily was finding it hard to ask these questions.

She felt JJ nod. "Yeah. That's why I asked you to stay outside, I didn't want you to know." JJ explained.

Emily kissed the top of her head as she closed her eyes.

"What did the doctor say? Is everything...okay?" Emily asked. She didn't know how to word her questions. She knew what sexual assaults could do to women physically but she didn't want to be too direct with her questions.

She felt warm tears on her neck, so she hugged JJ a little tighter.

"I had to get stitches." JJ whispered, her face still buried in Emily's neck.

"Stitches?" Emily asked, horrified. How rough had that...animal...been with JJ? She could only imagine the pain JJ must have been in, and to go through a rape kit alone, she couldn't even imagine what it was like for her.

JJ nodded once again. "I had a few minor vaginal tears and one that required stitches because it kept bleeding." She mumbled as Emily felt the tears on her neck increase.

Emily hugged her tighter, and placed soft kisses on her head, feeling more of JJ's tears on her neck.

"Oh God, Jayje." Emily whispered as the tears in JJ's eyes fell, making her sob into Emily's neck. "It's okay, baby. You're going to be okay. It wasn't your fault, angel. It wasn't your fault." Emily whispered as she let her fingers run through JJ's hair in a comforting manner.

"I don't want you to feel bad for me, Em. I just want you to understand." JJ said, her voice cracking.

"I know, baby. I love you. This was in no way, shape or form your fault." Emily assured, bending her neck to place a few kisses on JJ's cheek.

"I love you too." JJ mumbled, the tears evident in her voice.


	29. Did I wake you?

"JJ, you know, if you ever feel uncomfortable with something, you just tell me, okay? Anything at all." Emily said.

JJ nodded. She knew Emily wasn't like Kim, her mind sometimes just painted Emily in the wrong picture. She sometimes felt afraid of Emily but she knew there was no reason for that. She knew that Emily was nothing like Kim. She treated her right, she made her feel special and loved. She made her feel like a princess. She made her feel safe and protected, like no harm could come to her. She always had, even when they were just friends.

"And I need you to know right now that sometime in the future, when we make love, I want you to know that if you ever want to say no then you have that right. I won't even ask you for a reason because you don't need one. You don't need a reason to say no, meu amor, okay? Even if you say no, days on end, it's okay. I won't ever force myself on you. That is something I can guarantee you right now, angel." Emily cleared that up immediately. She needed JJ to know that.

JJ's eyes had already been dry of tears but immediately teared up again, but this time it wasn't as much of pain as it was of love. She teared up at how much Emily loved her, how Emily poured all the necessary emotions into her sentences, making JJ believe her every word. She didn't know how Emily could love her so much.

"It's okay now, baby. Everything will be okay. You'll be okay, you'll see. In time, I will help you forget all the bad memories and we will make happy ones together. I promise." Emily promised as her hand went to JJ's face, her thumb tracing her jawline and touching her lips before she replaced it with her own soft lips.

"I love you." Emily whispered, once they broke the kiss.

"I love you too, so much, baby." JJ said as Emily kissed her forehead.

"It's already 11 pm, why don't we go to bed?" Emily asked after a few seconds.

JJ nodded and got up. Emily got up too, grabbing her hand and leading her upstairs to the bedroom.

"I'm just going to change in the bathroom real quick. I'll be right back, okay?" Emily asked.

JJ nodded and sat on the edge of the bed as Emily went to change.

She had already changed, so she laid down, pulling the covers over herself as she waited for Emily. She closed her eyes as she thought about how relieved she felt now that Emily knew the whole story of what happened. It was like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders.

She felt the bed dip and jumped, opening her eyes, feeling her heart in her throat. Her eyes had been closed and she was lost in thought so she was distracted and when she felt the bed dip, she just freaked out.

"Easy, it's just me. It's just me." Emily assured, sitting on the bed looking at JJ.

JJ nodded trying to calm her heart.

When Emily was sure that JJ was okay, she laid down next to her. She put her arms around her and felt her tense, much like she had when she spent the night at the blonde's apartment, before she relaxed in her arms.

Emily started thinking about what she had just learned. JJ had, in fact, been forced to have sex. She had a feeling that that's what had happened from the start, but to actually hear JJ confirm it, just made it worse. It made her sick to her stomach. Everything that had happened to JJ made her feel sick to her stomach. She hated the fact that she hadn't seen just how bad Kim's abuse was. She hated the fact that she just thought that Kim was being controlling. She hated the fact that she is a profiler and couldn't figure out that the woman she loved was being hurt behind closed doors. But most of all, she hated herself for not pushing JJ harder and letting it go on. She had the power to stop it and she didn't all because she didn't think it was any of her business.

"Em, are you okay?" JJ asked in a concerned voice, looking at Emily.

"Huh?" Emily asked, distractedly as she looked at JJ.

"Are you okay?" JJ asked again, repeating herself.

"Yeah, I was just thinking." Emily said, trying to dismiss it.

"About what?" JJ asked, carefully.

Emily took a few seconds before answering. "How I could have stopped this. You know, I didn't push you harder because I didn't think your private life was any of my business. It wasn't, but if I had pushed harder then none of this would've happened and I am so sorry for not seeing what was going on. I am a damn profiler and I couldn't even notice that she was hurting you." Emily said with a scoff.

"Em, it wasn't your fault. You only saw what I wanted you to see. You're a damn good profiler and I became a very good actress. I learned how to hide my feelings and personal life from profilers a long time ago and you and I both know that I would've pushed you away if you pushed harder. You got me through everything. No matter how bad my previous night had been, you always managed to put a smile on my face. Always, Em. Don't blame yourself for this. You're not to blame." JJ explained, as she took a chance and traced Emily's jaw with her finger and looked at her lips.

Emily waited to see if JJ would take the initiative and kiss her, but after a while she realized that JJ wasn't ready for that yet, so she leaned forward and did so herself.

"I love you. I love you so much." Emily said, running her thumb in circles on JJ's back, gently.

"I love you too." JJ said with a smile before she laid her head on Emily's chest, listening to her heartbeat, falling asleep to the steady beating.

* * *

Emily woke up with a start, feeling the spot next to her on the bed empty. She headed downstairs to see if she could find out where JJ was. She found her leaning against the counter, her arms crossed over her chest. It was only 2:30 AM, so Emily wondered what had JJ up so early.

"Hey, babe." Emily said as she put her arms around JJ and kissed her cheek.

"Hey." JJ mumbled.

Emily furrowed her brows in confusion before looking at JJ.

"Are you okay?" She asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine." JJ replied, but Emily could tell it was a lie.

"JJ, you're not fine." Emily said matter-of-factly. "What's wrong?" She asked.

"Nothing." JJ insisted.

"Jen, look at me." Emily said when JJ continued to avoid her gaze.

"It's nothing, Em. Did I wake you? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to, I swear." JJ asked as she started getting anxious.

"No, you didn't, I woke up on my own." Emily said. "And if you had, that would be okay. What's going on, Jen? Why are you awake this early?" Emily asked. She usually wasn't forceful with JJ, but if JJ started closing off now, then there was nothing she could do to get her to open up later.

JJ stared at the floor, finding her feet very interesting. "I'm sorry." She said quietly much like a child getting an ear-full from a parent.

Emily sighed. "Jayje, honey, did you have trouble sleeping? Is that it?" She asked.

JJ nodded her head, not looking at Emily.

"Why?" Emily asked.

JJ shrugged. "Nightmares." She said simply.

"JJ! Why didn't you wake me up?" Emily asked, desperately.

"I-I didn't want you to be mad at me for waking you up. I'm sorry." JJ said. There it was, she was afraid of Emily again.

"God, baby. I won't be mad at you for waking me up. I want to help you, but I need you to tell me when something's wrong in order for me to be able to do that." Emily said.

They spent about a minute in silence until JJ spoke up.

"Kim always got mad when I woke her up, it was always by accident, but she used to hurt me when I did. I'm so scared that I'll do something that will cause you to snap." She said quietly, opening up a little bit more.

"JJ, I know that no matter how many times I say it, you won't believe me until I prove it, and I'm trying, Jayje, I really am. I will never hurt you. I'm not like Kim." Emily said. She was desperate, she wanted to prove to JJ that she wouldn't hurt her, but she didn't know how to do that.

"She messed me up so bad, Em." JJ said, the tears showing up, one making it's way down her cheek.

"I know, baby, but I'm going to help you get through this. One day, you won't be afraid anymore." Emily said, grabbing JJ's hand and rubbing small circles on it with her thumb.

JJ ran a hand over her face, wiping the tears away before turning towards Emily.

"I'm sorry, Em. For everything I'm putting you through." JJ said quietly.

"No. I'm sorry for everything you were put through. You're not putting me through anything. I love you. Nothing else matters to me." Emily said as she pulled JJ into a hug, feeling JJ's head rest on her shoulder and hearing her sigh.

"I love you too." Came the muffled response.

Emily lead JJ back upstairs to the bedroom. They laid down and Emily pulled JJ into her arms.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Emily asked.

JJ shook her head in the negative.

"Okay. Do you remember the night I spent at your apartment? Where I gave you that mini-speech about how I'm not like her?" Emily asked.

JJ nodded this time.

"Well, just try to remember those words, okay? I won't ever do any of those things to you. Ever." Emily said.

JJ nodded and put her arm around Emily's abdomen, tentatively.

"The ones on my hips were from when she..." JJ left the statement hanging in the air as she remembered the violent way in which Kim had violated her.

"I know. I will never force you to do anything you don't want to do. I don't want you to feel pressured into anything. What Kim did to you wasn't sex, you know that, right? The last time and the ones where she pressured you into it, that's not how it's supposed to be. And pressuring someone into sex isn't a sign of love." Emily said.

"She had to always pressure me into it because I never wanted to...you know...with her. She was too rough and it didn't...feel good." JJ said, a little awkwardly. "She would say things like 'you turned me on, so now you have to take care of business', or something similar to that. That's why I was afraid to lift my shirt to show you my bruises." JJ admitted.

Emily shook her head. "You won't ever have to feel afraid of that with me, okay? I won't force you or pressure you into doing something that you don't want to do and I will never be rough with you. Being rough with a partner without their consent isn't love, Jayje." She said immediately.

JJ nodded, but Emily could see in her eyes that she didn't believe her.

"Angel, it's true. Let me explain something to you. When you love someone, you do what you can to show them they're special. You don't just use them for sex and then send them to the couch, that's just not how it is. I will never do that to you. I will make love to you someday and then I'll hold you in my arms to make you understand that you're safe and will never be hurt again. That you're special and deserve more than the way you were treated before. And I will prove to you just how much I love you." Emily said as she let her left arm hold her up while her right caressed JJ's cheek. Until she knew that JJ was ready for her to prove it with actions, she would settle for words.

JJ put her hand behind Emily's neck, looked down at her lips, licked her own, took a deep breath and finally kissed her softly before pulling away. She didn't need to say anything, the kiss spoke for itself, but she did anyway to let Emily know how she felt.

"When I texted you to meet me at the park, I was hurting so bad. I knew I loved you before Kim even started hurting me. But when I saw you in the park and you came over to me and picked me up, carrying me to the car, I just fell in love with you all over again. You were just so different from Kim. You were so gentle with me and when you let me rest my head on your chest at the hospital, I just felt so safe. It was nothing like the feeling I had felt when I was with Kim. Kim was just so rough and she didn't care about me. I only stayed in that relationship out of fear, but the only thing I ever wanted to do was leave. When you went to arrest her, I knew you were most likely going to see the blood on the sheets, but I prayed you didn't." JJ said, a tear escaping.

Emily traced her finger over JJ's jawline as she spoke softly to her. She was glad that JJ kissed her this time, it was a little more progress.

"When I saw the blood on the sheets I didn't even think. Reid said that it could be menstrual blood, but I think it was only to calm me down. I knew it wasn't. I knew what it was from the start, I just didn't want to believe it. I went outside, pulled her out of the police car and pushed her against it. I wanted to kill her so bad, JJ. If it wasn't for Morgan and Hotch, I would've kicked the living shit out of her. I was so mad that something like that had happened to you. You didn't deserve that. You deserve to be loved and that was something that, from what I've gathered, she never showed you." Emily said as she continued to caress JJ's cheek.

"Even though I hate her for what she did to me, I don't want you to get in trouble. I don't ever want to lose you. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, Em." JJ said with a smile.

Emily smiled back and kissed JJ's lips.

"And you, cutie pie are the best thing that's ever happened to me. You're the girl of my dreams, JJ. I mean it." Emily said as she kissed JJ's nose, lovingly. "And I know it's hard to believe just words, but every promise I make, I keep. I will never do any of those things she did to you. I may be protective sometimes, but there's a line between protectiveness and control and I can promise you right now that that line will never be crossed. You have the right to choose what you want and don't want and nobody has the right to make that decision for you. I love you so much, baby; so much. I would kill myself before I ever laid a single finger on you with the intention of hurting you. That will never happen. Never." Emily said as she felt JJ's grip tighten around her.

Emily felt JJ's arm tighten around her abdomen in a sort of hug and she began singing, which surprised JJ again, even though she had already heard her sing before. She had no idea Emily could sing before that day at her apartment.

 _[Verse 1]_

 _All I am, all I'll be_  
 _Everything in this world, all that I'll ever need_  
 _Is in your eyes, shining at me_  
 _When you smile I can feel, all my passion unfolding_  
 _Your hand brushes mine_  
 _And a thousand sensations seduce me 'cause I_

 _[Chorus]_

 _I do, cherish you_  
 _For the rest of my life_  
 _You don't have to think twice_  
 _I will, love you still_  
 _From the depths of my soul, it's beyond my control_  
 _I've waited so long to say this to you_  
 _If you're asking do I love you this much_  
 _I do_

 _[Verse 2]_

 _In my world, before you_  
 _I lived outside my emotions, didn't know where I was going_  
 _'Til that day, I found you_  
 _How you opened my life to a new paradise_  
 _In a world torn by change_  
 _Still with all of my heart until my dying day_

 _[Chorus]_

 _I do, cherish you_  
 _For the rest of my life_  
 _You don't have to think twice_  
 _I will, love you still_  
 _From the depths of my soul, it's beyond my control_  
 _I've waited so long to say this to you_  
 _If you're asking do I love you this much_  
 _Yes I do_  
 _If you're asking do I love you this much_  
 _I do_


	30. Forever

**elphiemolizbethbau -** Yes she is! Here's that next update you've been waiting so long for! Thanks for the review! **  
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 **To all the others who reviewed the previous chapters:** Thank you so much for reviewing! I am so sorry for not thanking each an every one of you previously, but just know that your reviews are greatly appreciated! Glad you guys are sticking around for this story and I am so sorry for taking so long to update. Hope you still stick around while I continue to update. Thank you so much for all your reviews and here's another chapter! :D

* * *

The next morning, JJ woke up in Emily's arms only to find Emily staring at her with a smile and running her fingers through her hair.

"Good morning." JJ said with a smile as she stretched.

"Good morning, angel." Emily said as she leaned over to give JJ a kiss on the cheek.

"Who knew big bad Emily Prentiss could sing?" JJ asked, smiling.

Emily chuckled. "Yeah, I tend to only show that side of me to special people." She said with a wink.

JJ's eyes twinkled in delight as she draped her arm lazily over Emily's stomach.

Emily smiled. It looks like their talks and Emily's actions up until now really had paid off. JJ was much more comfortable around her than she had ever been before.

"Well, how about we go out for breakfast?" Emily asked.

JJ smiled and nodded. Kim might have been embarrassed about her, but Emily sure wasn't.

"But 10 more minutes right here wouldn't hurt, now would it?" Emily asked as she pulled JJ towards her, giving her a kiss on the lips.

"I guess not." JJ said with a laugh.

Emily loved to hear her laugh. It was her favorite sound.

She reached out and tickled JJ's ribs, being mindful of her bruises, making JJ laugh and squirm.

"Stop it!" She said as she laughed. "Emily!" She squealed as Emily laughed along with her, but stopped, letting JJ catch her breath.

"I love you." Emily said with a smile as she leaned down, giving JJ a kiss on the nose.

"And I love you too." JJ said, beaming back. She had never been happier before in her life. She spent last night thinking about the words that Emily had told her to remember. The words she had spoken to her when they spent the night at JJ's apartment. She smiled to herself knowing that Emily meant every single one of them.

"So, what do you want to do after breakfast?" Emily asked as she sat up in bed, sitting with her legs bent to the side as JJ was still laying down, her blonde hair spread out on the pillow.

"I don't know, what do you feel like doing?" JJ asked Emily.

Emily thought for a minute, trying to come up with something.

"We could maybe take a walk around town if you feel up to it. Or would you rather do something else?" Emily asked.

"No, that sounds like fun." JJ said with a smile, hesitantly pulling Emily to lay back down next to her, making Emily laugh.

"Alright then. A walk around town it is." Emily said with a smile.

"Do we really have to move?" JJ whined as she lay her head on Emily's shoulder.

"Well, we don't have to, but then we'll be really hungry." Emily said with a chuckle as she wrapped her arm, that was under JJ's body, around her.

JJ chuckled. "Good point." JJ said as she kissed Emily's cheek before getting up, letting Emily get up too.

"You go and have a shower first. I'll wait." JJ said with a smile.

"Are you sure?" Emily asked.

"Yeah. Go ahead." JJ said with a smile.

"Okay. I'll be quick so we can go have some breakfast." Emily said with a smile as she headed to the bathroom, grabbing all the necessary things along the way.

JJ smiled as she watched Emily head to the bathroom. She couldn't believe how much love Emily had shown her in the last two weeks.

It all seemed like a dream and if it in fact was a dream, then she didn't want to ever wake up.

JJ started making the bed and cleaning up a few things that were out of order. She didn't do it out of obligation, she didn't do it because Emily told her to, she did it because she wanted to. It was out of her own free will for the first time in a very long time.

When Emily came out, JJ went ahead and showered while Emily waited.

Once they were both ready, they grabbed their things and headed out.

They drove downtown and parked the car near a restaurant. They got out of the car and headed inside.

They decided on a corner booth that would allow them to talk without being overheard by anybody.

A waitress came up to them as soon as they entered.

"Good morning. What can I get you two lovely ladies?" She asked with a smile. Her attire reminded them a little bit of Garcia.

"I'll have a ham and cheese omelette, please. What about you, Jayje?" Emily said and asked JJ.

"I'll have some blueberry pancakes, please." JJ replied with a polite smile towards the waitress, hoping Emily wouldn't get jealous. Kim always got jealous for every little thing.

"Alrighty. One order of blueberry pancakes and another of ham and cheese omelette. What about drinks?" The waitress asked.

"I think I'll have an orange juice." Emily said, not seeming to be jealous, so JJ let out a relieved breath.

"Me too." She added.

"Okay, your order will be coming right up." The waitress smiled before leaving.

"Am I the only one that remembered Garcia when she came up to us?" Emily asked with a smile and a slight shake of the head.

"No, you're not." JJ said with a laugh.

"So...Would you like to go to the movies later? Like on a date?" Emily asked, looking at JJ, waiting for her response.

'I would rather eat a pile of shit than admit I'm your girlfriend! You're an embarrassment! A good for nothing slutty little bitch!'

"Jayje? You okay?" Emily asked as she put her hand on top of JJ's, where it was resting on the table, as she noticed JJ's eyes change. She knew she was remembering something.

"Yeah. Sorry. It's nothing you said, well it kind of is, but not in a bad way." JJ explained, with a shake of her head, clearing the cruel words out of her head.

"Okay?" Emily made it a question so JJ would explain further.

"You're not embarrassed about me, are you?" JJ asked, carefully.

"What? Of course not. I want to tell the whole world how you, the most beautiful and strongest girl on the planet, are my girlfriend." Emily said with a reassuring smile.

JJ nodded with a small smile. "Thanks, Em."

"What brought back these doubts?" Emily asked gently, not letting go of JJ's hand.

"Well, first you ask me to go to a restaurant with you, then you ask me to go to the movies, which I'll gladly say yes to, by the way..." JJ said with a smile, receiving another one from Emily in return. "...and they're both public places, so I had a feeling that you weren't embarrassed about me, but still, I had to know." JJ concluded, looking at Emily.

"Well, from your actions, I can tell that Kim told you she was, didn't she?" Emily asked and continued when JJ nodded. "I'm not embarrassed about you, Jayje. I love you, I don't care what other people think. You're not an embarrassment, I can promise you that." Emily said with a soft smile.

"I love you too, Em." JJ said with a smile.

"So, you do want to go to the movies later?" Emily asked with a smile as she wiggled her eyebrows.

"Yes." JJ said with a laugh.

Just then, the waitress came over with their food and drinks.

"Thanks." They both said to the waitress with a smile.

"You are very welcome." The waitress said, smiling back, before leaving to go attend another couple who had just entered the restaurant.

"Oh, I know you love romantic comedies, and thank God I love them too, but even if I didn't we'd still go, because well, I like doing what you like..." Emily said with a wink, making JJ grin. "...but anyways, there's one on tonight, and I think you'll really love it. I don't think you've seen it yet, it just came out." Emily said with an enthusiastic smile.

They continued to laugh, talk and eat, enjoying their breakfast, along with each others' company.

When they had both finished breakfast, Emily paid for the bill, despite JJ's protesting.

"JJ, come on, you have to stop doing that." Emily said as they left the restaurant.

"Doing what?" JJ asked.

"Protesting when I pay. You can pay sometimes if you want to, but I'll pay for some of those times too." Emily said.

"But, Em...You don't have to..." JJ said, quietly.

"Look, baby, I pay for it because I want to, because you deserve it. You deserve everything I can give you, and no matter how much you protest, I will always give you that, okay? And don't even think about protesting." Emily said seriously, but with a playful glare at the end, but after she did so, she realized that JJ hadn't seen it that way.

"Okay. I'm sorry." JJ said, looking down at her feet, while they walked through the city, as she saw the glare that Emily had given her. She would never protest again.

Emily took JJ's hand and lead her to a park that was about 10 seconds away, where they sat down on a bench.

"Hey, hey, look at me. I was kidding. I mean, I'm still going to pay for some of our dates, because well, that's just who I am, but the glare, I was just kidding. I'm sorry, Jayje. I wasn't thinking." Emily apologized. She hated making JJ feel scared, but sometimes, she just didn't think before she acted and she didn't remember how these little things affected JJ until after the fact.

They were in a park where, thankfully, there weren't many people around and they could talk freely without anybody over-hearing them.

JJ sighed and shook her head, before looking away, ashamed of her reaction. She hated having these reactions of fear towards Emily, she knew in her heart that Emily would never lay a finger on her, but sometimes, her mind just didn't listen to her heart.

"It's not your fault, Em. I'm sorry." She said as she continued to look away from Emily.

Emily, put her hand gently on JJ's chin, making her look at her.

"It's okay, alright? Stop apologizing. You have nothing to be sorry about. Nothing, baby. I know that you apologize out of habit, and I get that, I understand that, but I will tell you this as many times as you need to hear it and I will never get tired of saying it. I. Am. Not. Kim. Now, I know you know that in your heart, but your mind just sometimes gives you this unexpected reaction of fear, even when you know that I would never hurt you, am I right?" Emily asked as if reading JJ's mind.

JJ nodded, but didn't look away this time. Emily's hand had moved from her chin to her cheek, caressing it gently, as if trying to assure her that everything was alright.

"And every time you have those reactions, I will be right here to assure you that everything is okay. I will be right here to tell you that I will never hurt you and I will be right here to tell you that I am nothing like Kim. Okay, sweetheart?" Emily said with a smile.

JJ looked down at her lap, before looking at Emily again and kissing her lips. This was progress. JJ almost never initiated any physical contact between them. It was almost always Emily, but lately, JJ had become a little more comfortable with initiating the contact between them. She was still not quite there yet, but any progress is good, and Emily was proud of her for that.

JJ pulled away first and looked at Emily.

"You're right. I don't want to have those reactions, because I know in my heart that you wouldn't hurt me, but I can't help it. Sometimes, I just react, and although I don't want to be afraid of you, sometimes...sometimes I just...am, you know?" JJ asked, tentatively. She didn't want to hurt Emily with her words, she didn't want Emily to think she was afraid of her. She didn't know how to say it without hurting her.

"I know, angel. I know, and I'm so proud of you. You have made so much progress in these last few weeks. I know you don't feel like it, but you have, okay? I'm so proud of you, baby. We'll get there, meu amor. In time, we'll be okay." Emily said as she put a lock of blonde hair behind JJ's ear.

"But how long, Em? How long are you willing to wait?" JJ asked as the tears sprung to her eyes. She was so afraid that Emily might leave her if she waited too long. She needed to know how long was too long for Emily. How long was Emily willing to stand with her through her brokenness, her tears, her fears? How long would it take before Emily had enough and left? She needed to know the answer to that one question. The question that has been haunting her since day one.

"Forever." Was Emily's response before she kissed JJ with a passion that made JJ believe her. A passion that made her believe that Emily was going to be there until the very end. She kissed JJ in a way that JJ hadn't ever been kissed before. Even before Kim, she had a few lovers, but none of them ever treated her like Emily did. She knew Emily was the love of her life and that she would stand with her despite the stormy days, despite the fears, despite the pain. Emily was there forever and that thought made her smile. This was how it was meant to be from the start. This is how it should've always been.


	31. I'm Proud Of You

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* * *

Emily took JJ's hand in hers and pulled her up.

"Let's take a walk?" Emily asked with a smile.

"Yeah." JJ said with a beautiful smile that made Emily weak in the knees, and the fact that she was the cause of it made her turn into jelly.

"I love you." Emily said as she wrapped her arm around JJ's shoulders and kissed her cheek lovingly.

"I love you too." JJ said as she leaned into Emily's side, while wrapping her arm around Emily's waist.

"Anywhere specific that you want to go?" Emily asked.

JJ shook her head in the negative.

"Come on, Jen. I've been making all the decisions today, can you at least make one? You don't have to if you don't want to, but if you want to go somewhere specific then just tell me, baby." Emily said as she squeezed JJ's arm, gently to assure her that it was okay.

"Can we...can we go get coffee?" JJ asked, quietly. She wasn't used to making decisions anymore, only at work, but out of work, Kim made all the decisions for her. She never let JJ decide anything and if she did, Kim would make sure she learned her lesson.

Emily smiled.

"Of course we can, sweetheart. Of course we can, come on, let's go." Emily said as she kissed JJ's cheek again. "I'm so proud of you." She said with a smile.

JJ smiled back. She was hesitant to suggest anything, but she assured herself that Emily wasn't Kim.

They made a quick stop at the coffee shop to get their drinks before leaving to continue their walk.

They spent the rest of the morning walking through town in each other's company.

At about lunch time, they headed back home.

"Hey, do you feel like cooking?" Emily asked JJ.

JJ nodded. "What do you feel like eating?" JJ asked.

"I don't know, what do you feel like eating?" Emily asked.

JJ shrugged.

"Well, we'll think of something that we can make together." Emily said with a smile.

"I can do it alone, it's fine. You can go watch something on TV, if you want." JJ said.

"No, I'm going to help you. We're going to do it together." Emily said, immediately.

JJ just nodded with a small smile.

They both went to the kitchen and looked for something simple that they could make.

"Hey, how about a homemade club sandwich?" Emily asked as she looked at JJ.

"Sounds good." JJ said with a smile.

"Alright, then. Club sandwich it is." Emily said as she smiled back.

They got the ingredients and began making the sandwiches.

"So, the movie is at 7 pm. It's called Focus." Emily said.

"And it's a romantic comedy?" JJ asked.

"Yeah. I've seen the trailer for it. I can show it to you, just to make sure you like it before we go." Emily said.

"No, I trust your judgment on movies. Usually I like what you like, so I'm sure it'll be great." JJ said with a smile towards Emily.

"I'm flattered that you trust me that much, but are you sure you don't want to watch the trailer first?" Emily asked with a chuckle.

"I'm sure." JJ said with a small laugh.

"Okay." Emily said with a smile.

They finished making the sandwiches and sat down at the table to eat.

Once they started eating, the silence came over. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence, though. Emily was watching JJ as they both ate. How did she ever get this lucky? She had this beautiful woman by her side, and there was nothing more she needed in the world. All she needed was right there in front of her.

JJ looked up as she swallowed the rest of her sandwich.

"What?" JJ asked with an innocent look on her face.

"Nothing." Emily said with a chuckle, but didn't take her eyes off of JJ.

"Why do you always do that?" JJ asked with a curious look on her face along with a smile.

"Because I like watching you." Emily said with a shrug.

"Do you know how creepy that sounds?" JJ asked with a chuckle.

Emily rolled her eyes. "Well, I like watching you in a non creepy way." Emily said with a gentle laugh.

"That doesn't make it any less creepy." JJ said with a grin.

Emily laughed. "Okay, I like looking at you and thinking about how lucky I am to have you by my side. Still creepy?" Emily asked with a grin that matched JJ's.

"No. It's not creepy anymore, but I'm the lucky one, baby." JJ said as she finished eating her sandwich and got up to put her plate in the sink.

She smiled as she passed Emily before depositing her plate in the sink.

Emily soon did the same, with the grin still plastered on her face.

They spent the rest of the afternoon just lazying around and soon enough, it was time to go to the movies.

Emily waited as JJ finished getting ready.

She smiled when she saw JJ descend the stairs.

JJ wore a red shirt along with a black skirt and Emily wore a button up blue shirt along with a pair of dark jeans and they both had on a little bit of makeup.

JJ was a little bit hesitant to wear the skirt though. The fear of turning Emily on was still plagued in her mind, but looking into Emily's eyes and her smile, it assured her that she wouldn't make her do anything she didn't want to.

"Have I told you, lately, how beautiful you are?" Emily asked with a crooked grin.

JJ smiled and blushed as Emily met her at the bottom of the stairs and kissed her gently.

"Thanks, Em." JJ said, a slight shade of pink still tinting her cheeks.

"You are very welcome. Come on or we're going to miss the beginning." Emily said as she encircled her arms around JJ's waist and picked her up, spinning her around so she was on the floor and not on the stairs, making JJ giggle.

She kissed her forehead and they walked out the door once they made sure that they had everything they needed.

When walking on the street towards the movies, Emily kept her hand on JJ's lower back, keeping her close to her.

What JJ loved the most about it was the fact that Emily's hand never traveled below her lower back. Every person JJ ever dated before Emily would always, in this situation, put their hand on JJ's butt. She hated that they did that in public, she never said anything about it though. She loved that Emily's personality wasn't at all a perverted one. It never had been.

Emily was the type of person that wouldn't touch JJ like that in public and wouldn't do it at home either, unless she was one hundred percent sure that JJ wanted it. JJ loved that about her.

They entered the big building and took a seat.

Emily took her hand off of JJ's back and JJ reached out for her hand, effectively grabbing it and holding it in hers.

Emily smiled to herself. JJ was getting better at being the one to initiate physical contact.

She squeezed her girlfriend's hand reassuringly and smiled as the movie started.

They stayed like that throughout the whole movie, only letting go when one of them went to go get popcorn or drinks, or something like that.

When the movie was over, they walked out, Emily once again putting her hand on JJ's lower back, but not too far down.

"Tonight was great. Heck, today in general was great, Em." JJ said as they walked towards the car.

"I'm glad you had fun." Emily said as she smiled, remembering JJ's laughs throughout the movie. She loved to hear JJ laugh.

"Thanks, Em. Really." JJ said as she looked at Emily with a smile.

"You deserve it all, baby." Emily said, smiling back as they both got into the car.

JJ smiled to herself as she thought about how Emily had a way of making her feel comfortable around her.

"What are you smiling about?" Emily asked. JJ's smile seemed contagious, because it had Emily grinning too.

"Just how much I love you for making me feel so loved." JJ said with a smile.

Emily smiled and kissed JJ's cheek before she started the car and began their drive.

"Em, could I maybe...stay...with you tonight?" JJ asked, timidly.

"If you want to." Emily replied with a glance her way and a smile. "Do you want to?" She asked.

JJ nodded.

"Then of course you can stay." Emily said with a smile.

JJ smiled and Emily grabbed her hand, holding it in hers as she drove to her house.

Once they got to her place, they took turns showering. Once they had both showered, Emily went over to where JJ was reading a book on the couch.

"Hey, you coming to bed?" Emily asked. She knew that if she didn't invite JJ to go with her, then there was no way that JJ was going to take that step on her own. She knew that. It was too soon.

"Uhm, yeah." JJ said, quietly.

Emily took JJ's hand and led her up the stairs to the bedroom.

Once they got there, they both got into bed and Emily wrapped her arms around JJ.

She felt JJ tense up and then relax into her arms. This had happened all the other nights they spent together too. She rubbed her thumb on JJ's arm.

"You okay?" Emily asked quietly.

"Yeah." JJ said with a reassuring smile.

Another thing that Emily noticed was that JJ didn't apologize this time. That proved to her that JJ was becoming less scared of her. She smiled and kissed JJ's temple.

"I have a suggestion, but you don't have to say yes if you don't think you're ready, okay?" Emily asked and she literally felt JJ's heart speed up on her arm and her eyes become cloudy in fear.

JJ's thoughts were racing in her head. Had she turned Emily on, somehow? She knew it was a bad idea to wear that skirt. She should have just gone with pants.

"Baby, calm down, it's nothing like that." Emily said seeing the panic evident in JJ's eyes.

"Oh. Then what is it?" JJ asked as she calmed down a little bit.

"How about we go out on another date the next Saturday we have off? But this time except for me planning where we should go, you choose. I will help you if you want, but if you really don't want to do this, then that's okay. What do you think?" Emily suggested.

"I...uhm...what if...what if I pick the wrong place? Somewhere you don't want to go? I'm bound to mess this up just like everything else-" JJ was cut off by Emily immediately.

"You don't 'mess everything up', Jayje. You won't mess this up, you know why?" Emily asked.

JJ shook her head, motioning for Emily to tell her.

"Because wherever you choose to go, I will be happy to go with you. I know this is going to sound cheesy but the only thing that matters to me is that I'm with you. I don't care where we are. As long as you're there, any place is fine." Emily said as she kissed JJ's forehead.

"What if-" She was cut off by Emily once again.

"No what if's baby. You won't mess this up because there is nothing you can possibly do to mess this up, I promise you. Everything is going to be fine." Emily said with a smile.

JJ sighed, but nodded her head. She was so worried that she was going to pick some place that Emily didn't want to go.

"Baby, don't worry about it for now, okay? I'll help you, I promise." Emily said. She didn't want JJ to have to make the decision all on her own, she knew it would worry her to no end, so she was going to help her.

"How about this? I will suggest a few things we can do around here, then you'll suggest another few things we could do and we'll narrow the list down until we're left with only one, is that better?" Emily asked.

JJ nodded relieved. She didn't like making decisions. It made her extremely nervous and worried that she'd get it wrong. At least with Emily's suggestions it would be easier.

"Okay. That will help." JJ said, quietly.

"I'm really proud of you, JJ." Emily said, honestly.

JJ responded by placing a light kiss on her cheek and laying her head on her chest.

Emily smiled as she put her arms around the blonde.

 **A/N: Let me know what you think :)**


	32. Would They Ever Be Okay?

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* * *

The next morning, Emily woke up to the sound of the alarm clock. She turned it off fast so that it wouldn't wake JJ. She wanted to wake her herself.

"Baby, it's time to wake up." Emily whispered in JJ's ear as she caressed her cheek.

"Come on, sweetheart. Rise and shine." Emily said as she placed soft kisses on JJ's face.

JJ finally opened her beautiful eyes to the feeling of Emily's lips on her cheek and the sound of her soft voice.

"Good morning. Someone didn't want to wake up." Emily said with a chuckle.

JJ smiled as she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. "What time is it?"

"6 AM. We have to be in at 8." Emily reminded.

"Okay." JJ said as she yawned. She smiled at the way Emily woke her up; once again, nothing like the way Kim used to.

'Wake up!' Kim screamed shaking JJ like a tree, slapping her across the face. 'You have things to do!" She said, shaking and slapping JJ, making her wake up disoriented and scared.

JJ shook the thought away and smiled once again, remembering Emily's lips on her cheek, telling her, gently, to wake up.

"You go take a shower first. I'll go after you." Emily said as she kissed JJ's forehead.

It was still early, but the two agents needed to be at work on time, so JJ got up and headed to the bathroom with a quick 'okay' to Emily.

Emily smiled as she watched JJ go to the bathroom. She lay there day-dreaming for a while before she got up and started to make the bed and clean up a few things that were on the floor.

It was Saturday, but they didn't get the weekend off since they had paperwork to complete and there was a slight chance that they would get a case.

When JJ finished showering, she hesitated to come out of the bathroom. She didn't take her clothes with her so they wouldn't get wet or wrinkled. Any other day she would, but she was going to work and she needed to look presentable. She was only in a towel, but the issue and worries about turning Emily on came to the front of her mind again.

She must have been in there for a while just thinking about what to do because Emily knocked on the door.

"Baby, are you okay?" Emily asked. She hadn't heard the shower running for a while now and she was worried that something was wrong with JJ.

"Yeah. Uhm, I'm coming out." JJ said. 'Here goes nothing.' She thought to herself as she opened the bathroom door and stepped out, dressed in only a towel.

Emily had to literally swallow at the sight of JJ in just a towel but tried extremely hard not to show it.

"All done?" She asked, trying to not make a fool of herself by stumbling over her words. She was silently cursing herself. She knew JJ didn't do this on purpose, but darn, it's not like she had control over her feelings or reactions either.

"Yeah." JJ said quietly.

"Okay, I'll go take a quick shower and then we can head out. We'll grab breakfast on our way there, sound good?" Emily asked. She was desperate to get out of the room. Not that she didn't like seeing JJ dripping wet and only in a towel, it was the exact opposite. She liked seeing JJ that way, that's why she had to get out of there. Not that she would ever hurt JJ or force her to do something she didn't want to, but she didn't want to get even more turned on than what she was and then not be able to do anything about it.

"Yeah, sounds good." JJ said. There was a certain fear in her eyes. Had JJ seen her reactions to seeing her like that? She tried her best to hide it. Emily was worried. She didn't want JJ to think she would pressure her into anything no matter what.

Emily headed for the shower, pecking JJ on the cheek on her way there.

JJ had been panicked until Emily went to the bathroom. She saw the look in Emily's eyes. She knew she had turned her on and now she would probably have to-No. She stopped her thoughts. Emily wouldn't do that to her no matter what. She knew that in her heart, but still...

She already had her underwear and bra on, but she was so deep in thought that she didn't even move to get up from the edge of the bed, where she was sitting, to get dressed. She couldn't stop the thoughts crossing her mind.

What would happen once Emily came out of the shower? She knew Emily wouldn't make her do anything, but the doubts just kept coming back and she couldn't help them.

Emily never made her do anything she didn't want to. But they had yet to be in a situation like this. JJ hadn't ever been in just a towel in front of Emily, ever. She wished she had just taken the clothes into the bathroom. Wrinkled or not, it was better than the situation she could possibly be in.

She started to remember Kim. Her eyes, the need, the lust, it wasn't quite like Emily's though, Emily's still held love in them, Kim's held evilness and coldness.

She closed her eyes as she started remembering the look that Kim gave her on the night.

Her brown eyes had craved control as they pierced JJ's in a way that was enough to scare her. They were like steel. They held lust, but a lust for pain and suffering. A need for begging and for fear.

The iciness in her voice as she told JJ how long she'd been waiting for that day.

Emily came out of the shower only to find JJ trembling on the bed, holding the towel close to her body and tears running down her face.

She jumped when she saw Emily. She was frozen on the spot. She started breathing hard as she pictured Kim. She had no control over her mind as it plagued her with images she didn't want.

Emily was stunned at the sight she found when she came out of the bathroom.

And what killed her inside was that she knew she had caused it.

"Jayje? Jen, baby?" Emily asked as she stepped in front of JJ. She was fully dressed, since the clothes she decided to wear didn't wrinkle as easily as JJ's did, so she could fold them to avoid getting them wet in the bathroom.

She knelt in front of JJ, but didn't touch her.

"JJ?" She asked as she looked at JJ for any sign of recognition.

JJ's breathing wasn't normal and her eyes were clouded over.

"Jen, it's Emily. Look at me, baby. I'm right here, I'm not going to hurt you." Emily said, desperately.

JJ's eyes looked at Emily and she jumped back a little.

Emily immediately got up into a standing position and took a step back.

JJ's eyes began to water immediately.

"I'm sorry, Em. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to...I just...I'm sorry. Please don't make me do anything, Emily. Please." JJ begged as she looked brokenly up at Emily.

"God, JJ. I'm not going to make you..." Her voice trailed off as it broke, the tears springing to her own eyes.

"I'm sorry, Em. I'm so sorry." JJ sobbed as she held the towel securely to her body as if trying to stop somebody from pulling it away.

"I'm not going to hurt you, baby. I'm the one who's sorry, JJ. I am so..." Emily's voice broke as she turned around, trying not to cry in front of JJ. How had she let it come to this? How had she let JJ be afraid of her? God, she couldn't believe how stupid it was of her to do that. She didn't mean to, it just happened.

Emily turned back to JJ and wrapped her arms tightly around her, holding her securely as she let her own tears fall at the sound of her girlfriend's heartbreaking sobs.

"I'm sorry JJ. God, I am so sorry." Emily whispered as she felt JJ's arms wrap around her torso. "I would never make you do something you didn't want to, Jayje. Never." Emily said as she wiped her own tears before kneeling down on one knee in front of JJ and taking her hand.

"I didn't mean for that to happen, Jen. I swear that I didn't do it on purpose, you're just so beautiful and my body just...reacted, but I would never make you do anything at all that you didn't want. I swear on my own life, Jayje." Emily said as she looked into those ocean-like eyes.

"I'm sorry, Em. I'm sorry that I doubted that. I just...Kim...that night...it just came back to me. Her cold, lustful eyes. They're nothing like yours, but I just...I'm sorry." JJ said. She was calmer now, but she still had tears in her eyes and on her cheeks and she was sniffling.

"No. Don't apologize. It's not your fault. It's not. It was mine. Completely mine and I am sorry. I really am, Jayje." Emily said, her voice slightly trembling.

JJ looked into Emily's eyes and she saw so much regret that she couldn't help but put her arms around her. She didn't want to compare Emily to Kim. They were nothing alike.

"It's not your fault either. I love you. I know you had no control over your reactions and I understand that. I'm sorry for comparing you to...her. I just...I was in the bathroom a little longer for that reason. I was afraid to come out because I didn't want you to...you know. But my clothes would get all wrinkly and wet if I had gotten dressed in the bathroom and now I wish I had just gotten dressed there." JJ explained, her voice trembling.

"It's not your fault. I just want you to know that you can get dressed here in the room any time you want. I will never, no matter how turned on I get, I will never make you do something you don't want to. Please tell me you understand that, Jayje." Emily pleaded, her eyes shining with tears.

JJ had never seen Emily cry before and it made her heart hurt to know that she was the cause of it. She leaned forward and kissed Emily's cheek before gently placing her lips on Emily's.

"I understand." She whispered as she ran a hand through Emily's hair and rested her forehead against Emily's.

Emily smiled a watery smile and got up, placing a kiss on the top of JJ's head.

"I'll be in the living room. When you're done getting dressed, we can head out, okay?" Emily asked in a tone of voice just barely above a whisper.

JJ nodded and smiled a teary smile just like Emily had as she watched Emily leave.

Would they ever be okay?


	33. DTR

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* * *

They decided to go in the same car to work. When they arrived at the BAU, they were immediately lead into Garcia's den, by Garcia herself.

"I see you two beauties arrived in the same car." Garcia's tone was rather suggestive making Emily roll her eyes and JJ shake her head.

"So?" JJ asked.

"I just noticed." Garcia said simply but with a giddy smile.

"Spit it out, Garcia." Emily said as she looked at her friend with a raised eyebrow.

"Are you two an official couple?" Garcia blurted out with a huge smile making Emily laugh. She had been asking them this since their first date, but they never told her anything.

Emily looked at JJ at the same time that JJ had looked at her. They were both looking for signs that the other wasn't comfortable with sharing the news.

None of them found any sign of it, so Emily confirmed.

"Yes." She said.

Garcia squealed and hugged both women.

"I'm so happy for you two! I thought you would never see what was right in front of you!" She said happily.

"Thankfully we did." JJ said as she let out a slight chuckle. There was nothing but truth to her statement. JJ didn't know if she would actually have kept holding on if it wasn't for Emily. Emily was more than a girlfriend, more than a friend and more than a lover, she was her lifeline.

Emily was glad to see that JJ had a smile on her face again. She still felt bad for scaring her, though. This morning was the worst scenario she had encountered with JJ, yet. She didn't want to ever scare JJ like that again. Ever.

"You, my friend..." Garcia said pointing to JJ. "...are having lunch with me. I want to know all about this new romance." She said and there wasn't really an option either.

JJ looked at Emily and was about to decline when Emily stopped her.

"Why don't you go with her? I have a lot of work to catch up on anyway. I'll get a sandwich or something fast so that I can finish in time to not get home too late." Emily said with a smile.

JJ looked at her. "Are you sure?" She asked, cautiously.

"Of course. Besides, I bet Morgan is going to be the male version of Garcia." Emily said as she rolled her eyes.

They all laughed at that.

"Okay." JJ said with a smile towards both Emily and Garcia.

"Great!" Garcia squealed as she hugged JJ.

Emily laughed as she saw the two best friends.

"I have to get upstairs. You coming or staying?" Emily asked JJ with a smile still on her face.

"Coming. I bet I have a lot of files on my desk too." JJ said with a smile in return.

"Alright, let's go?" Emily asked as she held the door open for JJ.

"Aww!" They heard Garcia say as they exited her office.

They chuckled and went upstairs.

They were immediately met with Morgan.

"So, how are you two lovely ladies?" Morgan asked.

"Good, how are you Morgan?" Emily asked in return.

"Good. But I bet you two are better than I." Morgan said suggestively as he wiggled his eyebrows.

"Oh Lord. Here we go. I need coffee first, Morgan." Emily said as she groaned and left for the break room leaving JJ blushing and Morgan laughing.

"So...JJ...anything you want to tell me?" Morgan asked as he turned towards JJ.

JJ didn't know what to say. She opened her mouth to speak, but closed it again.

"I...uhm..." She started. She honestly had no idea what to say.

Morgan knew JJ was different. Normally she would give a smart-ass reply, but now she just didn't know what to say. But Morgan knew that Emily would get the old JJ back. He knew it.

Just then, Emily came up to them.

"Oh no. No way am I leaving JJ to deal with you. I'll deal with you later. We're both going to get coffee." Emily said as a warning to Morgan as she lead JJ to the coffee room.

They could hear Morgan laughing in the background as they continued walking towards their destination.

"Are you okay?" Emily asked with a small chuckle.

"Yeah." JJ said with a smile.

Emily didn't admit it out loud, but she found the sight of JJ blushing and at a loss of words absolutely adorable.

"Want some coffee?" Emily asked as she held the pot up in her hand.

"Yes, please." JJ said and Emily chuckled. Who was she kidding? JJ never declined coffee.

"What?" JJ asked.

"Nothing." Emily said as she slightly shook her head.

"What is it?" JJ insisted.

"Like you would ever decline coffee." Emily said shaking her head and a smile on her face as she poured two mugs of coffee.

"You know me too well." JJ said with a chuckle.

"I do." Emily replied, handing a mug to JJ, the smile still plastered on her face as she watched JJ take a sip of the hot liquid.

Soon enough, JJ was in her office, opening a case file. She read it for a few minutes before she realized she hadn't actually taken in any information.

She stopped reading and just closed her eyes thinking about that morning.

She wondered if Emily's words were true. Would Emily really never force her to do anything? She knew in her heart she wouldn't, but when she remembered what Kim did to her, she couldn't help but fear every other person that tried to initiate physical contact with her.

She knew she was taking a huge step when she decided to go on the date with Emily, but she thought she would be okay by now.

Her eyes filled up with tears as she remembered, once again, the night that Kim had forced herself on her. She tried to forget, she had been trying to forget that night and all the others for a long time, but she couldn't. She couldn't help but remember. She didn't want to be afraid anymore. She knew that pretty soon, Emily would get tired of waiting and would want more, but she knew she couldn't give that to her. She couldn't stand the thought of someone touching her.

She wondered if she would ever be able to return to normal.

She blinked back the tears and got back to work, this time more determined to get it done. She started concentrating on what she was doing, knowing it kept her mind off of other things.

Emily was at her desk doing paperwork when she looked at JJ's office. She watched as the blonde concentrated on whatever work she was doing.

She smiled as she watched for another minute before Morgan threw a paper ball at her. That's when an idea suddenly struck her.

She knew exactly how she was going to use her lunchtime.

"Staring is creepy. You know that, right Em?" Morgan said teasingly.

"Shut up, Morgan." Emily said as she threw the ball made of paper back at him.

"You're falling hard, Emily. You're head over heels for her, aren't you?" He asked a little more serious than before.

"I am, Derek. I really am." She replied honestly with a smile.

Morgan smiled at her. He was happy that the two women had finally admitted what they'd both been hiding for a long time. He knew that whatever that bitch Kim had done to JJ, Emily could heal. He knew that Emily would do whatever she could to help JJ get over what happened.

"Emily and JJ, sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G." Morgan sang in a child-like voice and laughed when Emily threw a pen at him as he ducked just in time.

JJ watched Emily from her office. She watched as Morgan looked like he was teasing her and she watched as Emily threw a pen at him. She chuckled to herself as she watched the two laugh. She wondered how she ever got this lucky, to have someone like Emily by her side. She sometimes wondered if she should just break up with Emily and let her find someone better. She didn't deserve her and she knew it.

She shook her head before she got back to work, but not before looking one more time at the bullpen to see Emily throwing a piece of crumbled paper at Morgan.

"I swear to God, Morgan. If you don't shut up..." Emily threatened.

"Ohh, I am so scared." Morgan said in a mocking voice. "Who will you call? Big bad Jennifer Jareau?" He asked as he laughed.

"Yes and then I'll tell her to bring big bad Penelope Garcia with her." Emily threatened.

That got Morgan to shut up.

"That's what I thought." Emily said with a victorious smile.

"You're no fun." Morgan complained.

Emily just laughed as they continued to do their paperwork.

Pretty soon, lunchtime came around.

"Hey, Em. I'm going to head to lunch with Garcia, do you want me to bring you something?" JJ asked.

"Uhh, could you maybe bring me a sandwich or something so that I can eat later?" Emily asked.

"Yeah sure. Usual?" JJ asked with a smile.

"Yeah. Thanks, Jayje." Emily said as she felt JJ squeeze her shoulder.

"Alright, Garcia's waiting. I'll see you later." JJ said as she felt Emily's hand brush hers that was still on Emily's shoulder.

She smiled as they let go and she left to go meet Garcia.

Emily had an hour to make her plan work. She knew JJ was going to be home early. She had told Emily earlier that she was planning on going home at about 6 PM. Emily told her that she would probably only get home at about 8 or so.

"Hey, Morgan. I'm going to go make a phone-call. I'll be right back." Emily said.

Morgan nodded and wondered what it was about, but didn't ask.

He smiled when he heard part of the conversation. Now he knew what it was about. He knew that Emily would take care of JJ, he knew she would make her feel special every chance she got.

After the phone call, Emily got to work on the second part of her plan. She smiled to herself as she prayed that what she had planned would make JJ feel better and forgive her for that morning, even though she had a feeling that JJ already had. That didn't matter, she just wanted to apologize, even though she knew JJ didn't blame her at all.

When JJ and Garcia got back, Emily had her plan perfectly in place.

"Hey, Em." JJ said as she sat on Emily's desk.

Emily smiled. "Hey, how was lunch?" She asked.

"Great. Thanks." JJ said with a smile.

Emily knew that JJ was thanking her for 'letting' her go out with Garcia to lunch and she didn't want JJ to feel the need to ask her for permission. They'd have to talk about it later or tomorrow.

"No need to thank me. Did you have fun?" Emily asked as she watched JJ perk up at the question. There was nobody in the bullpen but Emily and JJ, so they could talk freely. Morgan and Reid had already gone out to lunch.

"Yeah. We had lunch at our usual place and then we just walked around for a little bit." JJ said, her eyes as happy as they could get. Emily could see the smile in them. She wondered how long it'd been since JJ had fun with a friend. She knew Kim was a control freak so she probably didn't let JJ go out with her friends much, she knew it had been a long time since Garcia, Emily and JJ had gone out. JJ would always have an excuse to not go and now Emily knew why.

"Did Garcia grill you too much?" Emily asked with a chuckle.

"No. She asked me a couple questions about us, but nothing too personal. It's just Garcia being Garcia. You know how it is." JJ said with a slight laugh.

Emily smiled. She loved seeing JJ laugh and happy. She continued to listen to every detail as JJ rambled on and on about her lunch with Garcia.


	34. Let's Pretend You're a Wall

**ethanjakelexi -** Well, I guess you'll find out ;) Here's the next chapter and thanks for the review!  
 **elphiemolizbethbau -** Well here it is! :D Thanks for the review!  
 **Crdr -** Hahhaha yup! People don't like it when stories end so I just keep it going with little things! lol! Thanks for the review!  
 **anonymouswriterff -** I love them together too! Thank you! Well wait no more! Here it is :D Thanks for the review!  
 **Kensi1997 -** I'm so glad you liked it! Thanks for the review!  
 **ThunderKlaus89 -** Hahaha no problem! Thank you! Hahaha! Here's the next chapter! Thanks for the review!  
 **XxTitanium2016xX -** Yes she does! Thank you! Here's the next one! :D Thanks for the review!

* * *

6 PM rolled around pretty fast, and soon, JJ was descending the stairs from her office to the bullpen and the rest of her team.

"Hey, I'm going to head home. I finished half of the files that I had on my desk, so tomorrow, I only have to get the other half done." JJ said to Emily in a low voice as she put her hand on Emily's shoulder.

"Okay. I'll be home at about 8 or so. I still have some paperwork I need to finish." Emily said, quiet enough to keep the conversation private

"Hey, JJ. We haven't had a case in a while." Morgan said from where he was sitting on his desk.

"I know, I've had a few files on my desk, but nothing that required our immediate attention. Most of them weren't even connected and the ones that were, the detectives say they have it under control and no longer need our help." JJ explained.

"Oh, okay." He said and went back to his paperwork.

"Want to go over to my house? Maybe spend another night? Only if you want to, though." Emily suggested. She had to make her plan work.

"Okay. I'll see you there, then?" JJ asked with a small smile.

"Yeah." Emily said with a smile towards JJ.

"I'll see you guys tomorrow." JJ said a little louder for everyone in the bullpen to hear.

"Bye, JJ." They said back.

Emily watched as JJ left the BAU and smiled to herself. In about half an hour, she would set her plan in motion. It was just something she wanted to do to apologize to JJ for her reaction that morning.

JJ drove to Emily's house, parked the car and went inside.

She set her things on the coffee table before going into the kitchen to make dinner. She decided on a quick dinner, so she made shrimp, leek,and spinach pasta.

When she had dinner ready, she put it in the oven so it wouldn't get cold and sat down to watch TV.

She looked at the clock. 7:30. She still had half an hour until Emily got home.

She surfed through the channels for the fifth time and finally settled on the news when she heard the doorbell ring.

She wondered who was at the door at this time.

She got up and headed for the door, looking through the peephole before opening it to see a delivery man.

"I have a delivery for a Jennifer Jareau." The man said.

"Uhm, that's me." JJ said, confused when she saw that the man was holding flowers.

"If you could just sign here, please." The delivery man said, handing JJ the clipboard and a pen.

JJ signed it and the man handed her the flowers before leaving.

JJ closed the door. She was still confused. It could only be from Emily, but why would Emily send her flowers?

She saw a piece of paper attached to them, so she took it out and placed it on the coffee table before she put the flowers in water.

She sat on the couch and picked up the folded piece of paper.

It said 'I Love You. Emily.'. She unfolded it and started reading. It was a poem.

 _I don't know how to start, I don't know what to say  
_ _But I'll write down the words that come to my mind anyway  
_ _I love you so much, I swear that_ _this is true  
_ _When I talk about love,_ _all I think about is you_

JJ smiled as she read the first verses.

 _I know that_ _it sounds cheesy, but I'll show you it is true  
_ _I want to spend the rest of_ _my eternity with you  
_ _I know you still have doubts, but I'll love them all away  
_ _I'll show you_ _just how much I love you, every single day_

JJ covered her mouth as she smiled with tears in her eyes.

 _What Kim did to you, baby, that_ _really wasn't right  
_ _You didn't deserve what she did, you deserve to be held tight  
_ _To be kissed with love_ _and kindness and not hurt by her anger  
_ _You deserve to feel safe_ _, sweetheart, not living in fear of danger_

JJ felt a tear slide down her cheek as she continued to read. She wiped it away and kept reading.

 _I'll run my hands over bruises and my lips over_ _your scars  
_ _I'll show you the moon_ _with my love and not just the stars  
_ _I won't settle for good, I want to show you great  
_ _What she showed you wasn't love, it was anger and_ _it was hate_

She remembered the night that Emily had kissed her bruises and told her that she would never be hurt like that again.

 _You don't deserve a slap, you deserve a kiss  
_ _I_ _will show you all the love that she caused you to miss  
_ _And as for this morning, I'm sorry for my reaction  
_ _Seeing you so scared doesn't give me satisfaction_

'Emily sure has a way with words.' JJ thought to herself as she let a few more tears slip.

 _I know it_ _gave it to her, she loved to see your fear  
_ _But unlike her, I hate to see you even shed a tear  
_ _I hear you mumble in your sleep and it tears me apart  
_ _I hear you cry out 'no' and 'stop' and I swear it breaks my heart_

JJ wondered if she spoke in her sleep without waking up with a nightmare. She hadn't had a nightmare in two days, could it be that she was having them, she just wasn't waking up with them? Could it be that Emily soothed her enough that she didn't wake up, but instead calmed down in her sleep? She had to ask Emily.

 _I will never hurt you, baby, I swear on my own life  
_ _Who knows_ _? Maybe one day I'll make you my wife  
_ _I want to be with you forever, I want to kiss the pain away  
_ _I'll help you see the future and not look back on yesterday_

She wondered what it would be like for them as a married couple. She knew neither of them were ready to make that decision yet, but maybe one day it would happen.

 _I want you to know that_ _all these words are true  
_ _I will show you love, like you never knew  
_ _I know you had a couple lovers,_ _that came before Kim, too  
_ _But I bet none of them loved you_ _just as much as I do_

JJ knew Emily didn't say that to insinuate that JJ wasn't lovable. She said that to let JJ know that she loved her more than possible, more than she ever thought possible. JJ had tears running down her face as she hugged the letter close to her chest.

She knew she couldn't break up with Emily. She wanted Emily forever. She wanted to be held by her and kissed by her and be loved by her. She knew what she had to do. She would wait until Emily reached her limit and didn't want to wait anymore and then she would explain to Emily that she couldn't bear letting someone touch her again.

For now though, she would just not mention it until it came up. She just wanted to feel Emily's arms around her, securing her.

She heard the door unlock and as soon as Emily came in, she couldn't help herself. She ran to her and jumped, wrapping her legs around Emily's waist and kissing her with all the passion she could manage as the tears fell from her closed eyes. She surprised herself by doing that because she normally wouldn't trust Emily enough to do it, but she did. She did because she couldn't help the butterflies in her stomach every time she saw Emily. She just wanted to trust her. Even if that meant she had to force herself to do so.

When they broke apart, Emily smiled and carried JJ over to the couch, depositing her on it before putting her stuff on the coffee table and sitting down next to her, wrapping her arms around the blonde.

"I assume you read the letter." Emily stated as she saw the tear tracks on JJ's face.

"Yeah. I love you, Em and thank you." JJ said as she wrapped her arms around Emily's mid-section.

"I love you too, baby. And I am so sorry for this morning. I never meant to scare you." Emily said as she kissed the top of JJ's head.

"I know. Its not your fault. I'm sorry for being so scared, I just can't help it sometimes." JJ admitted.

"It's okay to be afraid sometimes, I don't blame you at all. I want you to talk to me and tell me when you're feeling scared and why, okay?" Emily asked.

JJ nodded. "Okay, baby." She said with a smile.

Emily left her arms wrapped around JJ as she took her shoes off and leaned against the arm of the couch. JJ sat between her legs, her back against Emily's front and the brunette's arms wrapped loosely around JJ's middle as they watched TV.

Neither one of them wanted to move to eat dinner. They just wanted to stay like this, so they silently agreed to stay on the couch for a while before they had dinner.

Once the two of them had dinner and both had taken a shower and changed, Emily walked over to where JJ was.

"Hey, Jayje, what do you think about watching a movie?" She asked.

"Sounds good." JJ agreed with a smile.

"Which one do you want to watch?" Emily asked.

"I don't know, you choose." JJ said.

Emily knew that JJ wasn't very good at making decisions thanks to her ex, so most of the time she had to be the one making them, although sometimes she'd gently insist that JJ make the decisions. JJ did if Emily asked, but her choice always came out as sort of a question as if she was hoping she made the right choice, the one Emily wanted. Emily was trying to show her that there was no wrong answer, but it wasn't that easy.

"Why don't you help me?" Emily suggested.

"Uhm...okay." JJ said reluctantly.

Emily wanted to tell her that she didn't have to if she didn't want to, but she didn't. She needed JJ to do this, she needed to teach JJ that it was okay to make decisions.

They went over to the DVD collection that Emily had and JJ knelt down next to Emily on the floor.

They searched through the different DVD cases to see if they found something interesting. Emily's eyes were more on JJ than on the actual DVD cases. She wanted JJ to choose what they were going to watch.

"Have you seen any interesting ones, yet?" Emily asked.

"Uhm, maybe this one?" JJ asked, reluctantly, holding up one of the DVD cases in her slightly trembling hand.

Emily smiled proudly.

"Sounds great." She said. Even though JJ had asked with a sort of reluctance in her voice, she had made the decision and that was enough for now for Emily.

She saw it, but pretended not to notice JJ's breath of relief. She knew that JJ's doubts and fears wouldn't go away just like that. It would take a lot of time and reassurance for JJ to trust her, but little by little they would get there. Emily would show JJ that she was worthy of her trust.

It didn't go unnoticed by Emily how when she got up, JJ immediately got up off her knees faster than the speed of light, her eyes widening a little before they went back to normal.

JJ noticed that Emily noticed it and cursed herself while looking at her feet.

"Are you okay?" Emily asked, her eyebrows knitted in confusion.

"Yeah. Can we...can we watch the movie?" JJ asked, quietly.

"Yeah, come on." Emily said, deciding to let it go. She grabbed a blanket off the back of the couch and sat down, her back against the arm of the couch and her legs on top of it as she patted the space between them, indicating for JJ to sit between them.

JJ complied, sitting between Emily's legs, her back against Emily's front, the position that they had been in earlier before dinner.

Emily draped the blanket over them and encircled her arms around JJ's abdomen.

The movie started and both of them were looking at the screen, paying attention to the movie and the characters.

By the time they were halfway through the movie, Emily rested her cheek on top of JJ's head, but not before placing a kiss there.

JJ intertwined her hands, slowly, with Emily's and felt Emily rub her thumbs on her hands.

She remembered the words from the poem Emily had written when she felt another soft kiss being placed on her cheek this time.

What Kim did to you, baby, that really wasn't right

You didn't deserve what she did, you deserve to be held tight

To be kissed with love and kindness and not hurt by her anger

You deserve to feel safe, sweetheart, not living in fear of danger

The truth is, she was still careful with everything she did, she was still somehow afraid that Emily would change, she was still illogically afraid that what happened to her the night she went to the hospital would somehow happen again.

She knew she didn't have the right to think like that, not with Emily. Emily never showed her anything more than love, but she still had that fear in the back of her mind that every once in a while came to the surface and showed itself. It wasn't like she wanted to be afraid of Emily, it just happened.

"What are you thinking about?" Emily asked.

"You." JJ said simply.

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" Emily asked.

"Good." JJ said.

"Okay, what exactly were you thinking about?" Emily pushed for a little more information.

"How much I love you, how you know what to say, how you know just how to make me feel special, and most of all, how you've shown me nothing but love and I'm still somehow afraid of you sometimes." JJ said, openly.

"You're afraid of me because you're afraid of Kim. Wait, that didn't make any sense. What I meant to say was that Kim made you fear doing simple tasks such as making decisions, being comfortable around her and God knows what else. And you're afraid of doing those things around me because even though you don't want to be, you're afraid that I might change and start hurting you like Kim did." Emily said. "But I won't. Ever." She added.

"I know that, but if I know that, why am I so scared? It's ridiculous." JJ said, turning slightly so that they were facing each other. Emily was in the same position, but JJ had turned so that she was sitting sideways on the couch, looking at Emily.

"Well, first of all, it's not ridiculous, it's normal. Think of it this way. The explanation will be really weird, but I think you'll understand it this way." Emily said with a smile.

JJ raised her eyebrow but stayed silent.

"Let's pretend you're a wall." Emily said.

JJ chuckled and her eyebrows shot up.

"I told you it was weird, but just listen." Emily said with a laugh.

"Okay." JJ agreed with a smile.

"So, you're the wall. Kim grabbed a hammer and a nail and she hammered it into the wall, creating a hole in it, right? A painful one at that." Emily started and suddenly the conversation turned serious, even though the explanation was not the most normal thing in the world.

"That's where I come in. I try to take the nail out. I could just pull it out and it would be over, but the hole created on the wall would still be there and it would probably be bigger, thanks to my inconsideration. What I need to do is gently tug on it day, after day, after day for as long as it takes so that the hole doesn't become bigger. After the nail is out, I will need to use some spackling paste, which is my love. I will have to get the paste and put it over the hole on the wall, so that it covers it. Now, the wall will not be the same again, but it will be okay. It will no longer have a hole in it. You will no longer have a hole within you. You'll be okay, Jayje. It will take time, but you will." Emily finished explaining and saw the tears in JJ's eyes.

"How do you do that?" JJ asked as a tear fell.

Emily gently wiped it away. "Do what?" She asked.

"Have a way with words like that? Be so complicated and yet so simple? Be funny, but yet serious at the same time? How do you do it?" JJ questioned.

"I don't know, I guess it comes naturally." Emily said with a smile.

JJ lay sideways, her head lying on Emily's chest as she grabbed a handful of Emily's T-shirt.

"And I love you for it. For that and everything else that makes you you." JJ said, sincerely.

"I love you too, my love. For everything that makes you the person I fell in love with." Emily said as she rubbed JJ's back lovingly.

They continued to watch the movie, JJ laying in Emily's arms and Emily rubbing different patterns on her back.


	35. The One

**elphiemolizbethbau -** Hahahaha! Yup! :P lol Thanks for the review!  
 **XxTitanium2016xX -** Thanks so much! Here's the next! Thanks for the review!  
 **ThunderKlau89 -** Let's hope everything is okay! Thanks for the review!  
 **starie78 -** Thank you so much! Thanks for the review!  
 **Guest -** Thank you so much! I guess the chapter showed exactly what was needed :P Thanks for the review!  
 **Crdr -** Thank you! Thanks for the review!

* * *

When the movie was over, Emily bent her neck so she could look at JJ. She noticed the blonde woman had her eyes closed.

She had no idea how she was going to get out without waking her sleeping girlfriend. Well, she had to get out somehow, so she maneuvered herself just enough to get out from underneath JJ.

She turned off the DVD player and the TV before going over to the couch. She then proceeded to pick up JJ into her arms. Once she had done that without waking her, she carried her upstairs to her bedroom.

She gently laid her on the bed, careful not to wake her and lay down next to her, pulling the covers over the both of them. She wasn't tired and thankfully, they didn't have to get up early tomorrow to go to work. Emily had spoken to Hotch and asked if she and JJ could have the same days off. The team already knew about their relationship and none of them had anything bad to say about it. They were all happy for them. Hotch agreed to let the two of them get the same days off work and Emily and JJ were very pleased to hear that. They didn't want their relationship to be only at work, they wanted to have some days for themselves.

Emily was propped up on her elbow with her head resting on her hand, watching JJ. She reached out and brushed away the hair that was covering the blonde's closed eyes. She placed a kiss on her girlfriend's forehead and just continued running her fingers through JJ's hair, but being careful not to wake her. She wondered, just like many times before, what it would have been like had she made a move on JJ before Kim. JJ wouldn't have gotten hurt. Emily shook her head. Blaming herself for what Kim did wasn't going to get her or JJ anywhere. She needed to concentrate on how to help JJ be the person that she was before Kim did the horrible things that she did to her.

She was beginning to become a little tired when she heard mumbling coming from beside her, something that wasn't unusual.

"No." JJ spoke in her sleep as her breathing started to accelerate.

"JJ, you're okay, it's Emily. You're okay." Emily said. She found that not touching JJ during a nightmare was the best approach, so she just spoke to her.

"Stop! I don't want this! Stop!" JJ said and the next thing she did caused Emily's heart to break.

She let out the most terrified scream that Emily had heard from her. It literally sent chills up Emily's back and made the hairs on her neck stand.

"JJ! JJ, wake up! You're okay!" Emily asked now desperately as she continued to hear JJ scream out in what looked like a combination of fear, pain and agony.

"STOP!" She screamed as she sobbed.

"JJ! WAKE UP!" Emily said as she shook JJ's shoulders in order to wake her up.

With one last blood curling scream, JJ shot up in bed, looking around the room, the sobs wracking her body as it shook like a leaf.

"JJ, it's me, Emily. You're okay. You're safe. I promise." Emily said as JJ's eyes landed on her.

JJ was finding it hard to breathe as the sobs continued and her body shook.

"E-mi-ly." She managed to get out through her cries.

Emily had never seen her this bad. She had never seen JJ have a nightmare as bad as this one. This one was the worst one so far and that scream that JJ let out rang loudly in Emily's head, echoing over and over again.

"It's me, baby. It's just me. I'm not going to hurt you. Just breathe, sweetheart. Just breathe." Emily instructed as she carefully reached out to hold her.

JJ leaned into Emily as she continued to cry.

"It's okay, honey. It's okay." Emily said as she hugged the blonde woman tightly to her chest, letting her know that it was okay, that nobody was there to hurt her.

Once JJ had calmed down enough to talk, Emily placed a sweet loving kiss to the top of her head, before she let go a little to look at her.

"Are you okay?" Emily asked. In the process of everything, Emily had managed to turn on the lamp on her bedside table, so that JJ could see that she was the only one there.

"Yeah, I'm sorry." JJ said as she stared at her hands that were neatly placed on her crossed legs and sniffled.

"Jayje, don't apologize. It's not your fault." Emily said. JJ always apologized for her nightmares and Emily hated that. She hated the fact that JJ even had nightmares in the first place, but most of all, she hated the person that had caused them.

JJ just looked away and bit her lip.

"This is one of the worst nightmares that I've seen you have, baby." Emily said, carefully.

"It _is_ the worst nightmare I've ever had." JJ confirmed, her voice shaking.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Emily asked, grabbing a hold of JJ's chin and gently turning her head so she could look into her eyes, but still, JJ wouldn't make eye contact.

"No. It's nothing." JJ said as she tried to brush it off. She didn't want Emily to know _how_ Kim had sexually assaulted her.

"Sweetheart that wasn't 'nothing', it was something. I have never heard you that terrified or let out a scream even close to the ones you let out tonight. Talk to me. It's okay." Emily said as she stroke her thumb over JJ's cheek, her other hand grabbing a hold of JJ's.

"I can't, Em." JJ said as another tear fell from her eye.

Emily wiped it away as softly as possible.

"Okay, I'll let it go for now, but you can't keep bottling it up, Jayje. It will do more harm than good, okay?" Emily asked.

JJ nodded, but in reality, she didn't know if she would ever tell Emily. She didn't want her to know. It was embarrassing and humiliating having to tell what happened. She would think about it later, but tonight, she just wanted to feel safe and only Emily had the power to do that.

As if reading JJ's mind, Emily placed her arms securely and protectively around JJ, laying them back down on the bed and began to softly sing to her, something that she found calmed JJ.

 _[Verse 1:]_

 _No rush though I need your touch_  
 _I won't rush your heart_  
 _Until you feel on solid ground_  
 _Until your strength is found, girl_

 _[Chorus:]_

 _I'll fill those canyons in your soul_  
 _Like a river lead you home_  
 _And I'll walk a step behind_  
 _In the shadows so you shine_  
 _Just ask it will be done_  
 _And I will prove my love_  
 _Until you're sure that I'm "the one"_

 _[Verse 2:]_

 _Somebody else was here before_  
 _She treated you unkind_  
 _And broken wings need time to heal_  
 _Before a heart can fly, girl_

 _[Chorus:]_

 _I'll fill those canyons in your soul_  
 _Like a river lead you home_  
 _And I'll walk a step behind_  
 _In the shadows so you shine_  
 _Just ask it will be done_  
 _And I will prove my love_  
 _Until you're sure that I'm "the one"_

 _[Verse 3:]_

 _Trust in me and you'll find a heart so true_  
 _All I want to do is give the best of me to you_  
 _And stand beside you_

 _Just ask it will be done_  
 _And I will prove my love_  
 _Until you're sure that I'm "the one"_

She hugged Emily tight, listening to the beating of her heart and the words she sang.

* * *

The following morning, Emily woke up to an empty bed. She quickly got up and headed downstairs to find her girlfriend.

When she descended the stairs, she spotted JJ looking at the city through the big window in Emily's living room.

"Jen?" Emily said to alert JJ to her presence so she wouldn't scare her.

JJ turned around as soon as she heard Emily's voice.

"Hey, are you okay?" Emily asked.

"Yeah." JJ said without so much as a smile. Emily found it strange, but it was reasonable.

"Have you taken a shower already?" Emily asked, carefully.

JJ nodded. "Yeah, and breakfast is on the table. It's still warm." She said.

"Okay, have you eaten already?" Emily asked. She noticed that JJ seemed...detached. Almost like it wasn't her. She didn't seem or sound like herself at all.

"No, I'm not hungry." She said, emotionlessly.

"Baby, you need to eat something. Just a little bit. Do you think you can do that?" Emily asked.

JJ sighed, but nodded her head a little.

"Okay, we'll eat first and then I'll take a shower." Emily said.

JJ nodded. Emily went to reach out for JJ's hand, but JJ immediately took a step back.

"Hey, I'm not going to hurt you. I just wanted to take your hand." Emily explained.

"Right." JJ muttered, trying to calm herself down.

Emily didn't really know if that was a real 'right' as in 'true' or if it was a sarcastic right as in 'yeah right'. She didn't ask though.

"Come on." Emily said, holding out her hand. She waited patiently for JJ to take it.

JJ looked at it, as if Emily's hand was a grenade and if she took it it would explode or something.

She looked at Emily and saw nothing in her eyes, just patience and love.

She swallowed thickly and closed her eyes slightly before taking Emily's hand.

Emily didn't hold it tight like Kim would. She held her hand loosely, but firm enough to let her know she was there.

They sat down at the table and put food onto their plates.

JJ played with her food as Emily glanced at her often, while eating.

Emily put her fork down, so she could talk to JJ. The 'clink' of the fork on the plate drew JJ's attention as she looked at Emily with wide, terrified eyes. The only thought crossing her mind was 'she's mad'. JJ's mind repeated that phrase over and over and over again until Emily spoke.

"Talk to me, sweetheart. Why don't you want to eat?" Emily asked, keeping her voice steady and gentle. She didn't want JJ to think that she was angry with her.

JJ shrugged, her eyes going back to her plate. "I'm not hungry." She said, quietly.

"Okay, can you tell me _why_ you're not hungry?" Emily tried.

"I don't know, I'm just not." JJ said, keeping her eyes on her plate, still moving her food around with her fork.

"Okay. Can you just take three bites at least? You can't start the day with nothing in your stomach, honey." Emily said. She didn't want to _make_ JJ eat, but it would be bad for her if she didn't.

JJ picked up a piece of her food with her fork and slowly brought it to her mouth. She really didn't feel like eating, but she knew Emily was right.

After a while, JJ had finished eating the three bites that Emily had requested. She looked up at Emily and Emily smiled at her.

"Thank you, sweetheart. I'm sorry, I know you really didn't feel like eating and I'm sorry for making you, but if you didn't eat, it would be bad for you. I'm sorry." Emily apologized. She hated to insist on something she knew JJ didn't want to do, but she didn't want to put JJ's health at risk either.

"I know and you're right. I'm sorry I didn't comply the first time you said it." JJ said as she hoped Emily would accept her apology and not punish her.

Emily got up and JJ stiffened and closed her eyes as she waited for the worst to come. She expected a slap or a punch or a kick. She expected anything but what she really felt.

She felt a lingering kiss being placed on her forehead and opened her eyes to see Emily in the middle of crouching down next to her.

She watched as Emily took her hand in hers and placed a soft kiss to the back of it.

"I don't like it when you feel like you have to obey me. When I ask you to do something, I am requesting it, I am not trying to _force_ you do anything. I want you to agree with me out of your own free will, I want you to agree because you know I'm right, not because you feel like you have to. And if you ever really think that I'm not right, then I want you to tell me that you don't agree with me." Emily said, standing up again, placing a kiss on the top of JJ's head.

JJ nodded, but she knew she wouldn't dare disagree with Emily, no matter how wrong she thought Emily was. She just wouldn't risk it.


	36. New Case

**A/N:** Guys, thank you so much for all the support. I'm sorry I disappeared for a while, but here's the next chapter.

 **A/N #2:** I did _not_ write this chapter. This story will be continued by my girlfriend  Sinca. She's the one who volunteered to help me and finish this story for me so all credit goes to her :) The story will still be uploaded here though :) PS: She's amaaaaziiiiiiing!

* * *

"Get up, team. We've got a case." Hotch said, stepping out of his office. He and JJ had agreed that he would help decide cases until she had settled a little more.

Emily stood up from her desk and headed to JJ's office to let her know. She knocked gently on the door, opening it once she'd heard the soft "come in" from inside.

"Hey, angel." Emily greeted JJ earning a smile in return, "Hotch says we've got a case."

"Oh, okay," JJ responded, not quite sure how to feel about her lack of involvement in the decision.

"Hey, don't get down on yourself. You know it's best you take a step back for a little while. You've gotta focus on me. I'm quite a handful," Emily joked with a wink, reading JJ perfectly as usual. "Come on, beautiful, we've gotta go to the conference room," she coaxed softly.

JJ sighed and stood up, taking Emily's hand as they both exited her office. As they entered the conference room, the others were already waiting and Garcia was standing in front of the screen.

"All right, my lovelies, we have three victims in the last 4 months. All of them have been found within five miles of one another in Cimarron County, Oklahoma. They've been abducted from all over the state, though. As you can see, each victim has red hair and green eyes, engaged, and are 27 years old but that's all I can find for similarities. They live in different counties, work different jobs, even have different gym memberships." Garcia explained.

"Local PD has identified the first victim as Lauren Whittaker and the second as Jaime Lawson. They've just found the third body, Elain Pierce. The unsub waits exactly 7 days between the discovery of the body and the next abduction. He keeps each girl for 3 weeks before disposing of them. They all appear to have been subjected to torture during the time they were held captive, escalating to a brutal rape and murder by a single stab wound to the chest shortly after. The unsub is organized, though. There's no DNA evidence and while they were disposed of within a small radius, that area is at least 10 miles from the nearest known human structure." Hotch filled in.

"He really covers his tracks," Morgan stated in disgusted awe, "each victim has bruises on their hips and thighs, probably from the rape, but what should have been the shape – and size – of his hand has been totally mottled with other bruises."

"Exactly, but he's bound to make a mistake at some point. They always do. Wheels up in 20; let's move out." Hotch said with finality as the team packed up their files and headed to grab their go bags.

"Hey, JJ," Emily whispered as her girlfriend made no motion to get up, still staring at the pictures of the victims. "Come on, honey, look at me," she said, turning JJ's chair to face her. She knelt before the blonde, finally managing to make eye contact. "Hey there, beautiful. You gonna be okay on this case? I can ask Hotch if – "

"No. No, it's okay. I'll be fine. It's just…familiar, is all." JJ commented, averting her eyes once more.

"You wanna talk about it, my love?" Emily asked gently. JJ had never really explained everything that had happened to her. Emily had no intention of pushing, but that wasn't going to stop her from giving a little nudge every once in a while, just to remind JJ that she was there if the blonde wanted to talk.

"No." JJ said fiercely, looking up once more with wide, frightened eyes, "I can't. I'm sorry, Emily. I just can't. Not yet," she finished, quieter.

Emily sighed, "okay, beautiful. I'm not going to make you talk, but if you change your mind I'd love to listen, okay?"

"Okay," JJ whispered, nodding but refusing to meet Emily's eyes again.

"Okay," Emily parroted. "Well, we should get going." She said, standing up and offering her hand to her girlfriend, "And, hey," she added before JJ could lead her out the door. Emily waited for JJ to turn to face her before continuing, "if at any point this case gets too much for you, you just tell me, okay? Just tell me and we'll figure out what to do from there, okay?"

JJ nodded again, "okay," she said with a small smile.

"Good," Emily said, smiling back, "now let's go."


	37. Rings

"We've already established this guy's clearly organized. He knows we could figure out his size by his handprints so he mutilated the bruises." Morgan said, analyzing the unsub's behavior on the plane.

"He's also got a reliable source of transportation. The furthest victim was abducted from Washita County, a 4 hour and 39-minute drive from Cimarron, with light traffic and a cut through Texas." Reid chimed in.

"That means he must have a way to subdue them for a long period of time and is confident they won't draw any attention to him." Hotch added.

"Maybe his job causes him to travel all over the state. That'd explain the diverse victim pool." Emily called from her seat beside JJ, holding her girlfriend's hand reassuringly.

"There's only a 2,294 person population in Cimarron. Maybe they live somewhere closer to Washita but dispose of the victims in Cimarron to keep them hidden," Reid suggested.

"But they're each within 3 miles of Boise City. The unsub can't have tried that hard to delay their discovery." JJ whispered.

"What was that, JJ?" Rossi asked.

"The victims were only 3 miles from the city. And based on decomposition, they'd been dead less than a day when they were found." JJ repeated, stronger this time.

"Okay, so he's confident that he won't get caught. He thinks that no matter when or how we discover the bodies, it won't be traced back to him." Morgan said.

"That over-confidence might be good for us." Rossi added.

"It might be the mistake which lets us catch him." Emily finished.

"But if he's not trying to hide them and he's so confident he won't be caught, why go all the way to Cimarron?" Reid added.

"Maybe he's trying to send a message?" JJ suggested, unsure.

"Okay, but what kind of message?" Morgan asked.

"He clearly has a type, so maybe he has a grudge against a woman that fits the description of our victims?" Emily suggested.

"Maybe an ex-girlfriend, or his mother. Someone close to him." Rossi said.

"It could always be a stranger he's fixated on." Emily mentioned.

"I don't think so," Hotch corrected, "he's too organized to get stuck on someone so insignificant. Anyway, we'll be landing in 10. We'd better be ready to go the moment we touch down."

As soon as Hotch said that, they all scattered, heading to their original seats to pack up their bags and prepare for landing.

Emily saw JJ heading to the back of the plane alone, so she decided to check up on her.

"Hey, baby." Emily said with a smile as she sat down next to JJ.

JJ looked at Emily and smiled back. "Hi, babe" she replied.

"Are you okay?" Emily asked, concerned.

"Yeah." JJ replied with a soft smile, but her eyes gave the lie away.

"You know I know when you're lying, right?" Emily asked with a smile.

"Yeah, but a girl can try." JJ said with a chuckle.

"True, but you will never succeed." Emily said in a playful way.

JJ shook her head and chuckled. "I love you, you know that?"

"I love you too, JJ. So much, and I'm here if you want to talk about anything, you know that, right?" Emily asked as she took a hold of JJ's hand, resting their intertwined hands in her lap, gently moving her thumb over JJ's skin.

"I know, I just need some time. Right now, everything's just so confusing and with the case and everything... it's just really not a good time." JJ replied.

"Okay, angel. That's okay." Emily smiled, gently moving to place a soft kiss on JJ's cheek before pulling back, only to see a beautiful smile on her girlfriend's face, which in return, made her smile even more.

"Thank you, Emily. Really." JJ said, her eyes looking into Emily's.

"For what, beautiful?" Emily asked, tucking a piece of hair behind JJ's ear.

"For being so patient and kind and loving and just... for being you." JJ said, the smile never leaving her lips as she spoke.

"It's what you deserve, my angel." Emily replied softly.

JJ leaned into Emily's chest as the plane touched down in Oklahoma.

"Alright, we're in two cars. Morgan, Emily, and Rossi head to the disposal sites. Reid, come with me to start looking more into the geographic profile back at the precinct. JJ you're with me, too. We've asked the victim's families to come in so we can speak with them. Everyone report back to Boise City PD when you can. Remember, we're just waiting until another girl gets taken. We have 6 days left so we better hurry." Hotch said once the plane had come to a complete stop. The team headed out to their assigned cars, Emily and Morgan bickering over who would drive until Hotch handed Rossi the keys.

Emily whined playfully at this but quickly retook the upper hand by hopping into the front seat before Morgan could notice, eliciting a groan from him and a chuckle from Rossi.

"You kids play nice," Rossi warned, jokingly.

"Oh, come on, man," Morgan complained, "I never have to sit in the back."

"Well, now's as good a time to start as any," Emily teased from her passenger side window.

Morgan scoffed and shook his head as he got into the back seat.

Rossi started the car and began driving.

"Everything okay with you and JJ?" Morgan asked gently.

"Yeah, I think this case is gonna be rough on her but there's not a whole lot any of us can do until it's over. I'll keep an eye on her and do what I can but, honestly, I think It's mainly a matter of waiting out the storm." Emily sighed. She desperately wanted to drop everything and focus on making sure JJ was okay but she knew she couldn't; they had cases to solve, lives to save. She'd have to wait until they got back to return her attention to helping her girlfriend.

Emily was pulled out of her thoughts by the sudden stopping of the car as they arrived at the first disposal sight.

"We're here," Rossi said, killing the engine. Emily hopped out of the car and surveyed the scene.

Surrounding them was a large plain studded with dry bushes. She could see the outline of Boise City through the heat and dust a few miles away. Other than the crime scene tape surrounding it and the road running right besides, this section of grass looked no different than any other.

"Doesn't seem like much of a place to hide a body," Morgan voiced Emily's thoughts.

"The population out here is next to none. He wouldn't have been that concerned about traffic on this road." Rossi pointed out.

"True," Emily admitted. "Hey guys, look at this," she said, kneeling down.

"Whatcha got there, Prentiss?" Morgan asked.

"Looks like some sort of engagement ring," Emily said, holding up a dusty band and handing it to Morgan who was pulling out an evidence bag.

"This may have come from our victim, it doesn't look like it's been here long." Morgan added, examining it.

"Rings don't usually just fall off," Rossi pointed out, "if it is hers, he probably removed it himself."

"Why would he leave it on during the three weeks he held her only to take it off when he disposes of her body?" Emily wondered.

"Maybe we'll get more from the other disposal sites. The next one is on the other side of Boise just a few miles. Let's go," Morgan suggested, jumping into the passenger seat before Emily had a chance to notice and earning him a glare from the other profiler and a chuckle from Rossi. The other two got into the car as well and they moved on to the next crime scene.

Once they got there, Rossi stopped the car and they walked towards the scene.

"So, Lauren Whittaker was disposed of here." Morgan said, looking at a patch of grass almost identical to the last one.

"Are you sure we even moved from the last scene?" Emily said, looking around at more dust and grass.

"There's really not a whole lot to distinguish these dump sites so what's so special about them?" Rossi wondered.

"The only notable feature is that they're close to the city." Emily stated.

"Hold on a sec," Morgan muttered, kneeling down in the dust. "It looks like another piece of jewelry," he explained, gently prying back a clump of grass. "It's another engagement ring," he said in confusion, "this can't be a coincidence."

"Let's go check the last site and head back to the precinct," Emily said, jumping into the passenger seat.

"So it seems that this guy keeps engaged women for three weeks, kills them, and then puts their ring beside them when they're disposed of," Rossi summed up to the rest of the team. True to their suspicions, they'd found another ring at the final disposal site.

"That's an odd signature," Hotch pointed out, "it must have something to do with his trigger."

"If he's motivated by revenge maybe an ex-girlfriend broke off an engagement." Morgan suggested.

"Based on where he's placed the bodies, it's pretty clear he's trying to send a message to someone in Boise City," Reid pointed out. "Maybe she lives there."

"I just finished talking to the fiancés. They're all pretty cut up about it," JJ said, walking in from the interview room. "Apparently, the women all went missing the date of their wedding. One didn't even find out until he was on the alter." She explained.

"Okay, clearly the wedding is important to him." Prentiss theorized, "we also found engagement rings at the disposal sites." She mentioned to JJ.

"We think his ex broke off an engagement." Rossi added.

"That makes sense," JJ replied, "since these women were all taken on their wedding day, maybe he was even left at the altar."

"Garcia, look for engagements that didn't pan out in the past 5 years," Hotch said, following JJ's train of thought. "Since his victims are around 27, it goes to reason that he's about the same age, or at least his fiancée was. Look for women in the relationship fitting the description."

"Sorry, boss man, I've got zilch." Garcia responded through the computer screen.

"You know, what if we're looking at this all wrong?" Morgan said, his eyes widening in realization. "A lot of people will search for anyone to blame other than the person they love, if something happens to the relationship."

"That's true!" JJ said, catching on, "if the killer was left at the altar, maybe their partner went to someone else."

"The trigger may have been something with the other relationship. Maybe they just got engaged." Emily joined in. "Garcia, check instead for recent engagements with women who fit the description. Probably about 4 months ago."

"I've got 7," Garcia said, typing away quickly.

"The couple probably lives in Boise City," Reid pointed out.

"Right!" Garcia exclaimed, "okay that's only one and…oh you have been one naughty boy…the groom has been using a fake name, Patrick Wells. I'll let you know when I find his real one. For now, the work and home addresses of the bride, one Clarise Jones, have been sent to your phones."

"Thanks, Garcia!" Emily said.

"Okay, JJ and Morgan check her home. Emily and Rossi go to her work. Reid and I will stay here in case Garcia finds his real name." Hotch commanded and the team moved out.


	38. Gone

JJ and Morgan were almost at the woman's house when they got a call.

"Jareau," JJ answered, pressing speakerphone.

"JJ, it's Emily. We just finished up at her workplace. Her boss says Clarise took a week off for wedding planning. We also found out that she lives with her fiancé so they'll both be there when you arrive."

"Got it. Thanks, we'll see you at the station." JJ said, hanging up.

"Here we are," Morgan said, pulling up to a quaint house in a small neighborhood and killing the engine.

"Two cars out front. They're definitely here." JJ noticed as she stepped out of the car.

The agents walked up the front porch steps and knocked on the door.

"Hello, I'm SSA Jennifer Jareau and this is SSA Morgan. You're Clarise, right?" JJ introduced to the lady who answered the door who nodded in response. She bore a striking resemblance to the victims as she peered out at the agents through the screen door, "we'd like to ask you and your fiancé a few questions. Would it be alright if we came in?" JJ asked, politely.

"Yes, yes of course." The woman said, opening the screen door and stepping aside. "Darling, the FBI is here to speak with us," she called through the home.

"FBI?" a bewildered voice called back as a man appeared in the entrance hall.

"You must be Patrick," Morgan said to the man.

"Yes. May I ask what this is about?" Patrick inquired as he stepped up beside his fiancée.

Yeah we're looking into some homicides in the area and we think you may know the culprit." Morgan stated bluntly.

"Homicides?" Clarise exclaimed, falling onto the couch and clutching Patrick's hand. "You mean murders?"

"Yes," JJ said, kneeling in front of the woman and shooting an exasperated look at Morgan. "Unfortunately, three women have been killed in the last four months and we believe the perpetrator is planning to kidnap another woman shortly."

"I don't see what this has to do with us," Patrick said.

"Well, we think the killer is someone you used to go out with, Patrick." Morgan explained, "As a matter of fact, we think you were engaged to them."

"What are they talking about, Pat?" Clarise asked her fiancé.

"I have no idea." Patrick said, glaring at Morgan.

"Maybe we should talk privately," JJ said as she stared at her phone, which had just chimed.

"I think it's better if you just left." Wells said with his arms folded.

"Sir, there are women dying," Morgan responded, bewildered at the hostility they were facing.

"Come on, Pat," Clarise cooed. "Just go answer their questions and we can put this behind us. Maybe you can even help save people!"

"Fine," Patrick said, defeated. "We can talk in my study," he finished, leading the agents to a small room and closing the door. "Now I don't know what you want, and I'd appreciate it if you didn't stir up any trouble." He said, turning to them with frustration in his voice, "I'm only doing this because Clarise – "

"Sir, we're looking for your ex-boyfriend." JJ interrupted, receiving a shocked look from Morgan and a horrified one from Wells.

"Excuse me? Who do you think you – " Wells began, but JJ cut him off.

"Look, we don't care that you're gay or bisexual or whatever. We won't tell your fiancé, though I'd advise you to do so rather than start off your marriage so poorly. What matters is that this man is hunting and killing women. Women that look a lot like Clarise. He's trying to get back at you both for hurting him. It won't be long before he gets the courage to come after her. Now, if you want to protect her, you'll swallow your pride and help us." JJ demanded.

"I," Patrick started after a long pause, "I don't know what to say. I mean, I knew he was upset but…killing?"

"Sir, we need his name," JJ said, having no patience to allow this man to delay the investigation further.

"Yes, of course. Damion. Damion Wilson. We met at a gay bar in town. We got engaged. We were even planning our wedding. But I got cold feet. My family kept telling me how much of an abomination it was. They weren't even going to come to the wedding. I'm bisexual so I figured…maybe it'd just be better if I went and found a girl to marry. And I met Clarise, and we started going out and we really hit it off. So, then the wedding came around and…I hadn't told Damion. I didn't know how to tell him. But my family wasn't gonna be at the wedding anyway so…neither was I. I'm not proud of it, but I didn't know what else to do." Patrick confessed.

"Did you get that Garcia? Damion Wilson," Morgan was saying into his phone before looking up at JJ. "We got him. We're closest to his home address so that's where we're headed," he explained.

"I'll be right behind you," JJ said as Morgan stepped out of the study. "Patrick," she said turning back to him, "you've gotta tell Clarise. She'll find out one way or another. It's best to get it out now, before the wedding so you both can have a clean, happy marriage, and so you can be sure she's the person you want to be with. Otherwise, you'll both end up taunted by what could have been or what might be."

"I know. I will. I just hope she doesn't think what I did was as bad as I do," Patrick said, nodding. JJ gave a small grimace and headed out, following Morgan.

"Looks deserted," Morgan commented as they pulled up to a dark house. "You take the front, I'll head around back, see if we can surround him as best as possible."

"Got it. Let's go," JJ responded, hopping out of the car. She held her gun and flashlight in front of her, creeping toward the front door and giving a nod to Morgan as he dashed around the back.

"FBI!" JJ shouted as she knocked on the door. There was no answer, but JJ heard a commotion inside. She threw her shoulder into the door and it burst open. Moving the flashlight beam from side to side she found herself in a small, dark hallway with doors on either side. She heard Morgan announce himself on the other side of the house as she opened each door and peered into the endless, empty rooms.

"Clear!" Morgan called from the other end of the house.

"Cle-" JJ started to respond as she checked the last room, but she didn't even finish the word when she felt a blinding pain and the world went black.

"JJ?" Morgan called when he heard her response get cut off. He heard a noise from down a dark hallway and ran toward it.

"Don't come any closer or I'll blast her head off!" A man said as Morgan turned the corner. He had an unconscious JJ in his arms and a gun to her head. "Now drop the gun and kick it over here," the unsub commanded.

"You don't wanna do this, man." Morgan said, holding up his hands in surrender. "We know what happened, Damion. Patrick left you. He cheated on you. It wasn't fair. But this isn't the way to get back at him." Morgan tried to reason, slowly lowering his gun to the ground.

"Shut up! You don't know shit!" Damion spat, carefully picking up Morgan's gun while maintaining his control over JJ. "Now I'm gonna take this pretty lady and we're gonna go somewhere far away. She'll be in the passenger seat as I drive away and I will have a gun aimed at her head. If anyone tries anything funny, I will kill her, understood?"

Morgan nodded his head slowly, resigned to his helpless situation. Wilson slowly backed away, dragging JJ along with him. Morgan waited until he heard a car door slam before exiting the house. He saw Damion get into the driver's side of a red pickup and began trying to memorize the license plate. He was already dialing Garcia when Damion pulled away.

"Hey, hunk of chocolate, when do I get to take a bite out of you?" Garcia answered in a sultry tone.

"Hey, pretty momma," Morgan answered, returning only a small smile to Garcia's playful words. "I can't joke around right now, baby girl. He's got JJ."

"Where." Garcia demanded, suddenly all business, "I'm patching in the others."

"I don't know but he's in a red pickup, heading north. License plate EIA-406. She's in the passenger seat and last I saw he had a gun to her head." Morgan said as he got into his own car, ready to head to the station.

"Who's got whom?" Emily's panicked voice came through the line.

"Wilson. He's got JJ." Garcia answered for Morgan.

"Wilson's got JJ?" Reid chimed in.

"Alright, no time for chatting." Hotch commanded. "Emily, you and Rossi head back from his office. Morgan, come back as soon as possible. He's probably got her wherever he kept the other women. Garcia, look for any abandoned buildings in his comfort zone or any other properties he or Patrick Wells owned or still own. Reid and I will keep studying the geographic profile and see if we can figure something out. Stay focused. We're no use to JJ if we let our emotions take control."


	39. Safe

"He usually keeps his victims for three weeks, so he must be some place pretty isolated or else he would draw attention to himself." Reid said, examining a map of Oklahoma. "There are warehouse districts inside his comfort zone here, here, and here." He said, pointing to different locations. "There's also boundless stretches of desert so he could technically be anywhere."

Emily let out a strangled sob at that.

"Shut it, kid," Morgan said, putting an arm around his friend.

"Oh. Sorry," Reid said, abashed.

"Well, luckily I'm pretty sure our boy genius is wrong for once." Garcia chimed in, "Damion has no record of any purchases of hardware or manual labor. It doesn't appear that he has any unregistered structures."

"He would need a building to hold these women in. Otherwise, even if no one saw him, we'd see the effect of the elements on the bodies." Rossi reasoned.

"Exactly!" Garcia said to the sound of her fingers typing wildly, "Unfortunately, that's the only good news I have for you. I can't find any other properties that Damion has ever purchased. And there's not a lot of traffic cams around, so the license plate hasn't shown up yet."

"What about houses of family members or any land they own?" Hotch suggested.

"Mmmm nope. Nothing within a four-state radius. They all live up in Maine." Garcia said.

"Hey, what about Patrick?" Morgan suggested, "I mean they were engaged. Maybe they had access to each other's finances, and maybe Damion still does."

"Uh…You are good, my shadow of sexiness. A huge storage unit was bought under Patrick's name…five months ago." Garcia said, staring at the computer in shock.

"That's gotta be it." Rossi said, looking around at the team.

"Alright. Reid, you're with Rossi. Morgan with me. Emily, you stay here." Hotch stated.

"Sir!" Emily exclaimed, outraged.

"You're too involved, Prentiss. We can't have you in the field." Hotch explained.

"I am not going to stay behind while that monster is holding my JJ! Who knows what he's doing to her? He raped those other women, you know!" Emily said, her face set but her voice trembling.

"What if she stays with me," Morgan chimed in.

Hotch hesitated, looking between the two agents, "fine. But you will follow every order to the letter, understood?" He said, receiving enthusiastic nods in return. "Alright. You two are with me. Let's go."

The team headed to the cars, Rossi calling for backup on standby from the local police. Morgan immediately got into the backseat, earning a confused look from Emily, who expected another battle for shotgun.

"You know, I don't blame you." Emily said, turning to Morgan and speaking over the wail of the sirens.

"You should." Morgan said, unfeelingly.

"No, I shouldn't. You did what you had to. He was gonna kill her if you'd done anything differently." Emily said, reassuringly.

"We shouldn't've split up." Morgan argued.

"No, we shouldn't have sent you two in alone. Splitting up was your best chance." Emily responded.

"Yeah, I guess. Let's just get that son of a bitch and get JJ back." Morgan said, his face set with determination.

"Agreed." Emily replied, turning her face forward as they neared the address.

The team held their guns aimed at the storage unit when Hotch nodded to Morgan. Morgan, in turn, threw his shoulder against the door and it burst open, the agents flooding in, guns ahead of them.

"So, you found me," Damion said from the back of the structure. JJ was chained to a post with a cloth over her mouth and Wilson's gun held to her temple. "I didn't think you would. I bet it's Patrick's fault. He sold me out, didn't he?" the killer spat.

"Meeting him eventually led us to you," Hotch admitted calmly.

"This is all his fault, you know. If that whore hadn't tempted him to go play with her, I wouldn't have to teach her a lesson. You know, I'm bisexual, too. My parents weren't onboard with the wedding; they wanted me to go find a nice girl to settle down with, so they could pretend I never loved any boys." Damion ranted, his gun still held near JJs terrified face. "But I didn't. I actually cared about Patrick. But he never cared about anyone. No one really cares about anyone. You're all liars and whores!" He shouted.

"You're right," Emily said, stepping forward. "It wasn't fair. It's not fair that Clarise took him away from you." She tried to appeal to some sort of humanity in him, "But some people do love each other. That woman you're holding there? I really do love her. And it wouldn't be fair if you were to take her away from me."

Damion looked back and forth between the two. "Oooooh a little office romance, hmm?" He cooed, sickeningly. "You know she doesn't really love you," he told JJ, but loud enough for the others to hear. "The moment she finds some cute new toy, she'll leave you in the dirt." He spat, making JJ flinch. "You know, there's another girl," He said to the room at large, "and I'll tell you where she is. But only if…" he paused, smiling at Emily, "only if you finish my job for me." He said, that sickening grin growing.

"What do you mean?" Emily asked, confused.

"The rest of you, leave the room." He shouted. "Leave or I'll kill her right now!" He screamed when he saw their hesitation.

"Go, I got this." Emily said over her shoulder and she heard the others file out.

"Yell if you need anything," Hotch said, before the door closed.

"Now that we're alone," Damion said, his face returning to his sickening smile. "You know what I usually do to the women. I rape them," he said, his mouth twisting further into that evil grin. "See, I can play with the whores, too. Just like Patrick. So, I want you to take this," he said, throwing a stick toward Emily, "and doing that part of the job for me."

"No." Emily said, taking a step back, disgusted.

"Do that or I won't tell you where the last girl is," he jeered.

"There is no last girl. You're bluffing." Emily said, though her voice wavered with uncertainty.

"Are you really willing to take that chance?" Wilson asked. "Show your little girlfriend how worthless she actually is to you. Then you can find out where the other girl is. She's pretty, you know. If you save her maybe you won't have to put up with this bitch anymore, anyway. Come on. Have some fun with her and then we can go get you a new girlfriend. A better one." He coaxed.

Emily took a step toward the stick.

"That's it. When I raped those girls they all screamed and begged me to stop. You have no idea the sense of power that gives a person. You look like you'd enjoy it. Imagine how fun it would be. She's chained up. You have total control over her. Imagine the way she'll squirm," Damion taunted.

Emily leaned down and picked up the stick, avoiding JJs eyes as they silently begged her to stop, tears welling in them.

"That's it. Here, I'll get you started," the man said, reaching for the fastening of JJ's pants.

"No, I'll do that." Emily said, smirking at Damion.

"Oh, you want the whole experience. I knew you were a top." Damion chuckled.

Emily approached JJ slowly, refusing to look into her girlfriend's eyes as JJ thrashed wildly at the chains. Emily stood right in front of JJ, holding the stick in one hand and placing the other just above JJ's pants.

Emily leaned forward to JJ's ear and whispered "you're safe." Before spinning suddenly and cracking Damion over the head with the stick. Damion's face barely had time to register the shock before her crumpled, out cold.

Emily threw the stick at Damion's limp form and hurried to release JJ from her bindings.

"Come on in!" She called to the team outside as JJ collapsed into her arms.

"I," JJ sobbed into Emily's shoulder, "I thought you were going to…"

"Shhh," Emily soothed, running her fingers through JJ's hair, "I know. I know, baby. But I wouldn't. I wouldn't ever."

JJ nodded into her girlfriend's shoulder, sobbing in relief and clutching to Emily as a lifeline as they both sank to the ground, JJ cradled in Emily's arms.

"We found the other girl." Hotch told Emily as Damion stirred. Morgan moved to handcuff him immediately and jerked him onto his feet roughly. "We called in the backup and searched nearby units. She was in an abandoned one a few rows down. She's on the way to the hospital now."

"We should head there, too," Emily said, glancing at the woman in her lap. Emily helped JJ stand and they walked out together, JJ still sobbing in Emily's arms.

Morgan led Damion to a squad car, reading him his rights and forgetting to help the killer avoid hitting his head on the door frame. JJ and Emily headed so JJ could get checked out.

"We'll meet you at the hospital," Rossi said to Emily as the woman stepped up beside her girlfriend's stretcher.

"Good job, team. Let's go." Hotch said, and the remaining agents walked to their cars and followed the ambulance.

The team was on the jet, headed back home. Rossi and Reid were playing chess in the corner. Morgan was chatting with Hotch in another, and JJ and Emily were curled up together on the couch.

"I think we're gonna be okay," JJ whispered suddenly.

"What do you mean?" Emily asked, peering down at the woman in her arms.

"Us. We're gonna be okay. I mean, I know it's not gonna be easy, but…after that case…I think we're gonna be okay." JJ elaborated. "I dunno, just…something clicked in the storage unit when you didn't…you know…but anyway, I think I finally realize…all of me realizes that I can trust you. I finally realized that…love doesn't hurt." JJ finished, avoiding Emily's eyes.

"That's great, baby." Emily responded, with a huge smile, sliding her fingers beneath JJ's chin to make the younger woman look at her. She leaned forward and kissed her girlfriend softly on the lips, pulling away only when Morgan called, "Hey! Get a room, you two!"

Emily threw a pillow at Morgan and JJ chuckled as she nestled further into the true safety of her girlfriend's arms. In this moment, everything was perfect. In this moment, JJ knew, everything was going to be okay.

 **THE END**

 **A/N: Thank y'all for sticking through this story. I am so sorry for the delays and everything that prevented me from updating. Special thanks to my wonderful, beautiful girlfriend who took on the challenge of completing this story. Thank you all so much.**


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